Ayurnamat Theorem
by xfucktheglasses
Summary: Wretched blood runs through my veins. —SasuSaku.
1. no rest for the weary

**1**

Water dripped from the pipes above.

It was constant, the dripping—_drip, drip, __drip_. It fell in sync with her footsteps, with her beating heart. It was the only sound, other than her breathing; the eerie atmosphere sent shivers down her spine. Sakura's eyes were wide in the darkness, walking down the tunnel with nothing but her racking nerves and her pulsing mind.

Hokage-sama had been very strict about where they kept his most prized prisoner.

The cell—it was the only cell, taking up the entire back of the cave; no bars, so it didn't even deserve the rights to be called a cell, now, did it? Hokage-sama was arrogant and absolutely loved to play with his prisoner's ego; chaining him, with no bars to secure his imprisonment. His prisoner must hate it—_she_ hated it.

And, oh, how Sakura hated it—how she hated _everything_.

She hated that orange-haired man for attacking her home. She hated him for killing so many innocents, for causing her Shishou to fight. She hated her Shishou for not waking up, for growing so thin and frail and so goddamn still. She hated her friends for pushing all that weight on her shoulders. She hated Naruto for taking it away from her. She hated herself for failing.

Because she had succeeded.

And that's why she hated herself the most.

Because she brought Uchiha Sasuke home and set him up for—for—for _this_.

She grit her teeth and stopped, feet away from him.

Sakura could see him, sitting down, legs spread out in front of him and arms chained above with chakra depleting chains. His head was resting against the cool, jagged surface of the cave's wall, his messy hair—growing long, now, oh, Sasuke looked like a ghost of his former self—brushing the top of his shoulders and falling over his bandaged eyes.

"Sasuke," she whispered and clenched her mouth shut. She didn't deserve to call him by the suffix she once adored to pin to his name.

He didn't move, and she didn't blame him.

If he disliked her when they were younger, he had every right to hate her now.

She closed her eyes and walked forward until she was right in front of him, her breathing shallow. Sakura crouched before him, reaching a hand toward his shoulder and stopping inches away. This was nothing different—this always happened.

"Sasuke," she whispered again, sad and filled with so much turmoil. "Sasuke, I'm…"

This always happened, too.

She always tried to apologize and the words always got caught on the tip of her tongue.

Sighing, she fingered his hair. "I can give you a haircut… It's gotten long…"

She reached for a kunai from her pouch and—

"Leave it."

His voice was a deep, low rasp. Nothing smooth and alluring left in it.

Sakura took a deep breath and nodded, pulling away.

"Sasuke—"

"Danzo know you're here?" he asked, slowly turning away.

"I—no… No…" She breathed, closing her eyes and opening them when she regained her composure. "I… I know how to get my way in here…"

He was quiet.

"I didn't—"

"It's been months," he cut her off, not harsh. Because Sasuke wasn't harsh, like he should be. He was quiet and lightly annoyed. Like he had finally given in to where he was now. "Save it."

Sakura furrowed her brow, lips puckering up as she tried to calm her anger. "You can't just—"

"I just did."

"Naruto—"

"I know."

Sakura growled, standing up and pacing around.

"This wasn't what was supposed to happen!" She fisted her gloved hands at her side, messy bangs falling to shadow her eyes as she looked down at the ground, brow furrowed and lips set into a deep frown. "I was… Everyone was trying to _kill _you! I… I…"

"Shut up."

Sakura shook her head. "I—"

"Shut _up_."

And she fled.

.

.

.

Sakura laid in bed and reeled on everything she'd done up to this day. It went something like this:

Just short after the attack on Konoha, the new Hokage was appointed and everyone thought it would be Kakashi—everyone _knew_ it would be Kakashi. But it wasn't; it wasn't because the new Hokage was Danzo and he was such a twisted man. He had changed so many things—sent Kakashi and Naruto out of the village and far, far away; across the nation. He'd sent Gai away—he'd sent anyone that mattered away.

And, oh, her Shishou had been thrown aside and it was all she and Shizune could do but keep her hooked up to an IV in Shizune's house, a place they both haunted every hour of the day.

She'd been stopped by her friends—all of them. There'd been Shikamaru and Ino and Chouji and Hinata and Kiba and Shino and Lee and Tenten and even Neji. They'd looked serious, had heard about Sasuke joining the Akatsuki from the foreign villagers that arrived to help them.

Akatsuki was the enemy—not so much anymore because of Naruto, but because—because, look at what they did to their home. Look at what they'd done to their leader and look at who's hand they'd fallen into because of that.

Sasuke needed to be taken out.

And, fuck, Sakura's heart had jolted up to her throat. And, fuck, how she wanted to save him; because, fuck, how she loved him. She loved him irrationally—stupidly—incoherently. Only not—because she knew what she had gotten herself into, since she was young. Sasuke was dark and dangerous and beautiful all together; he was a night with a full moon and the drunken adrenaline pumping in her system. He was bruises and blood and twisted pasts and she accepted it—she accepted all of him.

So she'd assembled a team and went in search of him.

And Sakura knew him best, second—she knew him. She _knew_ him.

And she found him.

And she was framed.

Lee and Kiba and Sai were knocked out and it was Sakura and Sasuke—both battered and bruised and bloody—against ROOT members that fought with the intentions to kill. And when Sasuke had been captured and Sakura had been pinned down, Danzo appeared.

"True to your Sannin sensei before you," he had hummed, mocking, "you've captured Uchiha Sasuke for me. Well done."

And that look in Sasuke's eyes had been the last before they were covered with bandages.

.

.

.

She fingered a forget-me-not, lips pursed into a soft scowl and fingertips as soft and delicate as they could ever possibly be now.

Ino sat next to her, slicing up apples; green, because Sakura liked green apples the best. It was quiet between them—it was always quiet between them. Sakura didn't know if Ino resented her for the false accusations and claims hanging off her name like dripping blood from a ledger.

She swallowed, thickly, and accepted a slice handed to her over the cool metal surface of the knife.

"At some point," Ino finally whispered, "we have to do something."

Sakura debated whether to play the clueless act. But she couldn't—because this was Ino and _she _knew _her_ the best. "Everything's all wrong."

Ino's piercing gray-blue eyes were on her—she could feel them, burning holes into her skin. She took a soft intake of fresh air and looked up at her. "I know what you think of me—"

"I don't think anything."

"—Cut the bullshit, Ino. You think… You _actually_ think I'd do that to him?"

Ino looked down for a moment.

"This is _me_."

"Everything's all wrong," Ino said, throwing her words back at her. "What's there to even think, anymore?"

Sakura threw the forget-me-not onto the counter and stood up. Her hands—free of their gloves, for once—clenched and unclenched into fists at her sides. Her molars ground into each other uncomfortably and her eyes refused to look up as she tried to form a coherent sentence out of everything running through her head.

"I'm going to fix it—this—everything." She took ragged breaths and looked up at Ino. "I will; you'll see."

.

.

.

"Why are you back."

His questions were never questions and it always made Sakura's heart pang with nostalgia.

"I'm going to fix this," she whispered, breathing harsh and cracked and uneven. She crouched down in front of him, itching to push his hair back and run her fingertips down his jawline to assure herself that he was real and calm her wracking nerves. "I'm going to fix this."

He looked away from her, like he always did. The bandages around his eyes were dirty with sweat and the exhaustion of being tied around him for months on end; the medic within her hissed how horrible that was for his eyesight. All of him—he needed attention. He needed to be fed… He…

"Sasuke," she whispered, leaning forward.

"Quit dreaming, Sakura," he muttered, lips barely moving. He sounded tired. "Go home—"

"No!" She slammed a fist onto the wall, mere inches away from his face. It rumbled and cracked in protest, but Sakura didn't pay attention to it. "Stop sending me home—_stop_ contradicting me! Stop…" Her voice lost all its fight and her eyes stung with unshed tears. "Stop making it seem like you've given up."

His lips pulled back into a sneer. "And what other choice do I _have_."

"Fight back, you asshole!" She grabbed at either side of his jaw and forced him to face her, dropping down on top of him so that she straddled him. "Fight—back—you have to… You have to fight back!"

"_You're_ the one that put me here," he growled.

And Sakura saw red—it was a flash of a millisecond but it was enough for her to punch him in the jaw. She heard it crack and saw it instantly begin to bruise and swell. Her chest rose and fell erratically and she forced her eyes shut as a means to regain her composure.

"I," she swallowed. "I had _nothing_—absolutely _nothing_—to do with your imprisonment." She brushed her finger around the swell of where she'd punched him, tears of anger and turmoil catching at her lashes. "You… Should know me better than that—they were… Everyone was trying to kill you. I panicked! I didn't know what my exact goal was, out there—but I know, for a single fact, that it was not to get you captured and I was _not_ working under Danzo."

She swallowed, again, and slowly began to heal his bruise. "My loyalties," she whispered, "are still with my Shishou—and with Team Seven. Or what's left of us."

There was a thick silence laced with tension and Sakura felt like she was drowning in it.

"Get off me, Sakura," Sasuke said. She watched his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed, lowly saying, "Go home."

.

.

.

Sakura lost count after five.

It became like a routine—it consumed her and it was all she could ever really think about. When she trained, when she worked at the hospital, when she treated Danzo and his disease, when she visited her Shishou, when she sat with Ino, when she sat by her window and wondered where Kakashi and Naruto were—were they okay? Were they fighting their way to them? Were they even alive?

But all she could really ever do was plot and plan.

Because she couldn't do anything alone—she'd be setting herself up for failure.

Gone was the insecure girl and with it the one that was worthless and weak. But she wasn't wonder woman—she needed help.

She needed _Sasuke_.

And so she started from there.

She had to figure out how she could get him out and how to fight off the ROOT that were already there, guarding his prison religiously.

Sasuke would be weak and Sakura couldn't take them all on by herself.

But—but—her relationship with the other rookies… It was so goddamn strained… How would they even _want_ to help her? When they'd settled on killing Sasuke, they'd done it to save the escalated hate and war, and they'd done it to save him from himself. When Sakura had left with Kiba, Lee and Sai, she knew she wanted to save him, too. Because she loved him too much…

…But with everyone thinking that she helped in his capturing…

Sakura broke her window with a punch, on the nth night of her planning and musings. She grit her teeth and ignored the blood flowing from the knuckles and the jagged jars of glass sticking out at random places. "Damn you, Danzo."

She leaned her head back against her wall, biting her lip in frustration and running her hand through her hair, leaving trails of blood to blend with the pink strands.

.

.

.

And when it happened, it was pure adrenaline and fear that fueled her limbs.

Her pupils were dilated—black overtaking the yellow-green of her irises as she moved within the shadows of the night. Her lips were parted but she tried as best as she could to keep her breathing down; it was sheer luck, the fact that she made it to the cave as the ROOT soldiers made their watch switch.

She moved with all the agility her thirteen years of training taught her. She could see Sasuke's limp form as she neared.

"Sasuke," she whispered, sliding down in front of him. "Sasuke, wake up—listen to me."

"Sak'ra…?"

"Yes—Sasuke—Sasuke, _wake up_!"

"Wha's… What's going on….?"

"We're getting out of here, Sasuke." She snatched at the bandages around his eyes and cut them right off with her chakra. "Open your eyes, Sasuke."

It took him a while—first a squint, and then a flutter, ten flutters, and his dark eyes were on her. She swallowed, thickly, looking over her shoulder toward the entrance of the cave. She turned back to him, breathing hard and erratic. She was crazy—this was crazy—so worth it—but so fucking crazy. Suicidal—if they were caught they were _dead. _

"Sakura, what the hell are you thinking…"

She locked eyes with him, her hands gripping at the chakra depleting chains. "I'm thinking about setting things right—I said I'd fix this. I'm breaking you out and we're going to find Naruto."

Sakura took a deep breath, grabbing the chains on either of her hands and concentrating. They were chakra depleting, so using her chakra would be futile and stupid. But Sakura's strength didn't come from just chakra—she always had this immense strength that even she couldn't handle, properly.

So she concentrated on that—and _yanked_.

They popped and broke with a saddened cry before the pieces fell to the ground between them. Sasuke snatched at his wrists and flexed his arms, completely numb and lost of any sort of feeling to them from having them hang above him for so long. He clenched his fists and threw them, as punches, hearing the satisfying pop of his elbows snapping back into place.

Sakura grabbed his forearms and raised him to his feet, catching him when his lack of chakra caused him to stumble.

"We don't have much time," she whispered.

When he made to walk, she grabbed him, brow furrowed as a thought occurred to her.

"What?" he hissed.

"My Shishou taught me something," she breathed out, her eyes locked with his. "It's something so common, I think—I've never seen it happen between shinobi, but I bet it is."

"What the hell are you talking about."

"I can give you some of my chakra," Sakura stated, face serious. "I can give you enough so you can fight, if we need it. But I need to keep the majority of it or I'll be useless—and I refuse to ever be that again."

Her nerves jolted when she heard ROOT just at the mouth of the cave, but without another word, she placed her hands to Sasuke's chest, closed her eyes and concentrated. She envisioned images of breaking—she watched herself, long hair, lanky and awkward, handing Ino the red ribbon—she watched herself fight off those Oto ninjas—she stared as she asked Tsunade for her guidance—she watched her fight against Sasori—

And then everything was explosions.

Everything was kunais and shurikens against her skin and blow after blow after blow. She wondered how the hell she managed to breathe as she concentrated solely on dodging and hitting back.

Where was Sasuke—her system was going haywire because if he was down for the count this had all been for nothing and—a punch.

Sakura growled and shielded her fist with green, connecting it with a nameless ROOT's face and trying to find her away out of the cave before it collapsed.

.

.

.

Konoha was in shambles behind them.

There was a fire—something burned; a building of some sort, and the black smoke curled around the dust of the crumbled cave and landscape. She could hear screams of confusion and fear and she could hear the shinobi preparing to go in to search for them. She dropped to her knees, hands gripping the grass as she tried to regain her breath.

Across from her, Sasuke leaned into a tree.

.

.

.

"What now?" There was a gash at the edge of his left eyebrow and a deep scratch that would leave a thick scar across his chest.

Sakura licked at the nasty cut at the corner of her lips, a bruise already forming under her right eye. She crouched down, looking behind her in paranoia, before she turned back to look up at Sasuke. He was staring back at her, running his hands through his messy hair.

Her voice was cracked and it hurt to suck in air as she said, as solidly as she possibly could, "We look for Naruto."

* * *

Thank you so much to Paige for beta-ing this before its repost!  
She says that I am not allowed to say I can't write Sakura anymore, or I'll be slapped. **  
**

Please be cool, bitches, and tell me what you missed from this lil ole' story of mine ;D


	2. red sky at morning

**2**

Dawn came with them still blearily awake and just as injured as they'd been hours ago.

Sakura drooped her head, closing her eyes and relishing the sting that overpowered her aching limbs. There'd been a static silence between them since she worded what their exact goal was from there on out. She didn't know if she should be worried; Sasuke had always been the quiet type—even more so when it came to her.

But… This was _Sasuke_.

The things that went through his head…

She made to bite the corner of her lip but instantly paused at the bittersweet feeling that jolted her senses upon brushing her tongue against it. Sakura lifted her head slightly and watched him from under her lashes and through her bangs.

He was sitting straight across from her, his legs out in front of him and his arms carefully, delicately, resting on either side, palms facing up. They were cut and bruised from their earlier fight, but Sakura didn't think Sasuke could really feel the pain even if he wanted to. Having his arms hanging above his head for months… It made all feeling lost, didn't it?

His head was tilted to the side; his eyes were squinted—almost closed, entirely. The skin under his eyes was moist and—yes, of course. Sasuke had his eyes covered for _months_. They had always been sensitive due to his doujutsu but, with this, the sensitivity was massive. The growing sunlight was probably beyond uncomfortable.

"We should move," she found herself saying.

Sakura was always going to be the one that broke the silence between them, wasn't she?

Slowly, Sasuke turned to face her, brow furrowed, eyes downcast and half-closed. He didn't reply and his body language didn't say much.

Sakura chewed on the inside of her cheek. Without another word, she stood up, wobbling on her feet as she tried to regain her senses and demand the world stop spinning so fast. It wasn't only for Sasuke's benefit that they should move; sooner or later—if not already—Danzo would start sending out ROOT in search for them. And given the fool he came off as, with their getaway, he wasn't going to show any mercy.

She blinked a couple of times, grabbing her bearings and walking toward Sasuke. He hadn't moved, still sitting in the same position he had been since they both collapsed from utter exhaustion.

"Sasuke," she said, "stand up."

He let out a deep sigh filled with all the weariness the world could offer, and made to stand up. Sakura was itching to help him, because he clearly needed it—but this was _Sasuke_. Assisting him was equivalent to insulting a blind man for being unable to see. She furrowed her brow and tried hard not to bite at her tender lower lip.

It was pure instinct to grab his biceps and keep him upright the second she watched his struggle duplicate. Or perhaps it was her nerves, acting up because _never_ in her life had she seen Sasuke so helpless—not even in the Forest of Death, when Orochimaru had first bitten him. Not even… Just…

She slid his arm over her shoulders, making sure the majority of his weight was leaning into her.

"C'mon," she whispered, praying to any deity that would listen—let this be smooth sailing, at least until they were both replenished.

.

.

.

Sakura didn't think her profound adoration for nameless villages could grow any larger.

She sucked in air as she disposed of Sasuke and herself on the front porch of a small inn, in the heart of the village. Her head was pulsing and her stomach was beginning to eat itself from the lack of food; she didn't really remember when the last time she ate. It surely wasn't the day before—eating and hunger had been out of the question, what with her nerves eating her alive at the thought of what she was going to do.

Next to her, Sasuke lifted his head up, his eyes still squinted as he looked around.

Food—they needed food and rest; they needed to restore their energy so they could leave.

Away from Konoha and out of Fire Country.

"I should stop thinking so much," she muttered to herself, rubbing the heel of her palm into one of her eyes.

She swore she heard Sasuke scoff, but when she turned to face him, he was looking down at his legs hovering just a mere inch above the dirt-ground. Sakura swallowed and looked away, peering at the small village. Passerby kept turning wary looks their way and curious children grinned and stared with fascination.

They probably looked completely out of place; bruised faces and blood coated them like second skin and dirt and grime splattered like a disease. Sakura bit her lip and jolted at the sensation of her cut pulsing.

"Sorry," said a very tired voice behind them. "But you _will_ have to clear out, if you don't plan to come inside."

Sakura stood and turned around, blinking green eyes and giving an apologetic smile. "Sorry, ma'am."

The idea of spending at least one night in the inn was essential, but there was little to no money on Sakura's person. And if she was lucky to find something, it'd only cover one person. She pressed her lips together, almost harshly and with her masochistic side coming out to play, full throttle; this time, when her injury stung and pulsed, she relished in the feeling because _fuck_ if she wasn't stupid.

She didn't think this through—not entirely. So many holes left unfilled and… She set them both up for failure and the bitter victory of the first stage's success never even settled in.

"I'm sorry," she repeated, soft and sullen.

The elderly woman walked back into her inn and Sakura stood there, hands clenching and unclenching into fists at her side and her eyes staring at a spot over Sasuke's shoulder. It took her less than a minute to straighten her back and walk into the inn and ask for shelter. She made sure to leave Sasuke outside, or he'd refuse upon hearing her voice out their dire need; or he would have, had he not been so eerily quiet. The thought left a metallic tang in her mouth.

.

.

.

"We're only here for the night," she said, pressing a wad of cotton against the uncapped top of a bottle of alcohol.

She pressed the wad against her lip and twitched at the burning sensation. Her eyes watered and her brow furrowed, but this was the best way to clean the cut up without losing too much time. She still had cuts to heal and flesh to mend. At this, her eyes flicked to Sasuke's chest without turning away from the mirror. She almost flinched at the angry red skin around what was left of the gash.

It was infected; she had healed what she could without losing too much chakra, while they'd been in the woods. Now, it was just a matter of cleaning the infection and restoring the cells so the nasty cut would close up. The minor scratches littering their bodies meant little to nothing, and neither did her bruised cheekbone or her split lip.

It was that cut.

And rest.

And even food.

"So I guess we'll have to sleep as much as we can," she continued, only half paying attention to what came out of her mouth.

Sasuke grunted, laying on one of the two cots, eyes hiding behind the crook of his arm.

"I don't see," he said, after a long while. His voice was a rasp from lack of usage and from exhaustion. "Where you're getting at."

"With what?" she asked, running a thumb across her cheekbone.

"This."

Sakura turned around, already settling that she was fine and everything else was not going to be an obstacle for their travel. "We're going to look for Naruto and Kakashi-sensei."

Her eyes were on him, reading his body language and almost letting her—as of late—uncontrollable anger get the best of her. But she took a deep breath and closed her eyes and counted to ten. She took her chin in one hand and placed her other one behind her head and cracked the kinks out of her neck before walking toward him.

It went silent, after that, and Sakura refused to talk this time.

So she settled into crouching down next to him and getting to work on his cut.

.

.

.

They ate in darkness.

Sasuke's eyes were slowly and surely adjusting, but the light still bothered him and what would be the point of having food in front of him if he couldn't really _see_ it? So Sakura turned the lights off and moved the curtain so the soft illumination of the sunset at least gave the room a gentle glow.

Rice balls.

They weren't Sakura's favorite dish, but beggars couldn't be choosers and starvation made her turn a blind eye.

And Sasuke's quiet enjoyment made her lips quirk into a wry half-smile without her even realizing it.

.

.

.

The streets were covered with thick blankets of fog as they stole into the early morning. Lamps were still illuminating the streets as best as they could, eerie orange almost lost with the fog curling around them wickedly. Sakura lifted the hood of her cloak up and hunched her shoulders; she closed her eyes and silently thanked the elderly inn-keeper for her hospitality and her help for the nth time.

Next to her, Sasuke was seemingly regressing to his infamous title, his movements were less hopeless and more controlled and with his unruly forelocks, the hood of his cloak and the darkness that announced the day hadn't begun yet, his vision seemed to be alright.

They walked against the shadows, blending in and being one cloud of darkness. Sakura couldn't even hear her own footsteps as she walked at a fast pace, her eyes darting from left to right as paranoia and slight fear played with her emotions.

"You're going to have to take that off."

It was—was probably _hours_ since either of them spoke a single word; they had been moving in a relatively still and tense silence that, up to now, as it shattered, Sakura hadn't realized she'd gotten accustomed to it.

She looked up at him, the sky slowly growing bright as the sun began to rise. Her brow was furrowed and she was completely at a loss of what he could possibly mean. "Excuse me…?"

"Your hitai-ate," he said, without even looking at her.

Realization dawned on Sakura—she hadn't—how could—she had it on the _entire_ time. How could she have possibly allowed that to happen?

Her lips thinned into a grave line as she lifted her hands up to the knot at the base of her neck, her stride and speed never breaking as she began to loosen it.

Of course.

Bailing Sasuke out had been a personal mission of hers, which was why she had put her hitai-ate on before leaving her apartment for the final time. And being so used to having it on, the solid fact hadn't even crossed her mind until… Until _now_.

"Oh," she breathed out, feeling the cool metal of the plate against her warm palm as the headband fell into her hand. She looked down at it, swallowing thickly and feeling like this was another obstacle that was going to make her prove herself.

Sakura's loyalty to her village—her home—was almost as strong and solid as Naruto's.

Discarding of… of her hitai-ate… It was like… Like—

"Burn it."

Sakura skidded to a stop. "_What_?"

"I said burn it," Sasuke repeated, sounding agitated as he stopped a few feet ahead of her.

She was completely outraged at the idea—how could she _possibly_ burn the insignia of her village—her loyalty—her devotion—her _love_? It was ludicrous to even suggest; why was Sasuke so fucking insensitive and so—Sakura grit her teeth and breathed to keep from exploding.

"I'm not burning it," she sneered, green eyes flashing with anger.

Sasuke turned to face her. The skin under his eyes was beginning to blend with the rest of his face and didn't seem as hazed and, god, he looked beautiful—but Sakura refused to delve in to those thoughts. She pushed them away—shoved them into the darkest corners of her mind because she refused to be swayed by her… her... her... _She refused to be swayed_.

"Look," he said, clearly losing his patience just as she was. "If you drop it here, you're leaving tracks of where we are and where we've been. And if you carry it with you, you're setting us up for failure. So either you burn it or I'll do it myself."

Sakura bit at her lip. He had a point—fuck, if he didn't have a point.

Her heart ached and she could feel tears forming at the back of her eyes, burning as they made their way out to brim her eyes. She let her arms fall limply at her side, one hand holding onto the headband and letting it drag on the ground. She closed her eyes, swallowed, and gave a nod.

* * *

A million thanks to Paige for popping up randomly with beta'd files that scare the rainbows out of me.  
Isn't she the best?!

And you guys, too~ Thank you for the support c:

Edit: Also, guys, if any of you have ever saved my (old) stories for some unknown reason, to read or something... Would you kindly PM me? I promise it's not me going to bite your head off!


	3. crossroad blues

**3**

The fire crackled.

By the sun's position, Sakura figured it wasn't even close to noon yet. Her eyes burned with the lack of a good night's rest—how long had it been since she slept through an entire night, let alone slept at all? Too long, she decided as she crouched down in front of the little fire.

Sasuke had been reluctant to waste what chakra he had restored with the rest he'd gotten, but gave in and set the small twigs alight when she mentioned—with hurt laced in her words—that she still needed to get rid of her headband.

The other reason she wanted a fire came to her when she noticed the walnuts.

It was a moment of pure chance—her eyes spotted the nuts just as the hood of her cloak dropped and strands of her noticeable pink hair blurred her vision. She'd skidded to a very sloppy stop, crouching down and digging her fingers into the dirt to keep herself from slipping. Sasuke, who was unwilling to stop, appeared next to her with a dark scowl.

She boiled the walnuts in water that she'd spared from her canteen. The water turned darker with every minute that it continued to boil and, if she hadn't lost count yet, there was only five minutes left before the dye would be ready.

Sasuke sat under the shade of some trees, legs extended, arms crossed in front of his chest, and eyes closed as he lightly dozed off.

Five minutes later, Sakura pulled the makeshift pot from the twigs that held it above the fire and stomped the flames until they died down, leaving nothing but ashes of branches and what was once a headband worn with all the pride its owner could muster. But Sakura didn't delve into the thought and tried to turn a new leaf. She sighed and stripped out of her cloak and her customary red top, allowing the soft breeze to have new flesh to feed upon as she left her upper half uncovered with nothing but the white binds around her chest.

She slid her favorite, worn out gloves into her hands and took one last sigh, fingering her pink strands—

"What the hell are you doing?" demanded Sasuke. She turned to face him and saw what was probably the closest thing to a scandalized expression that someone like Sasuke would ever wear. She'd laugh, if she wasn't still so furious.

"Look away," she said, self-conscious enough to curl into herself.

Sasuke sat up, brow furrowed and nose wrinkled. "Where's your shirt?"

"I said _look away_, Sasuke. God!"

She caught his eyes widening for a brief second when the true fact of the matter hit him in the face. He quickly turned away, the tips of his ears red.

Sakura swallowed and dipped her hand into the dark water, closed her eyes, and began.

.

.

.

It was dawn when they paused again; this time, Sasuke suggested it after hearing the familiar tune of water nearby.

That brought opportunities in itself, he had said; a chance for her to refill her water supply—which she'd wasted in her experiment—and a perfect place to camp for some time while they slept. Sakura had simply nodded, hiding under her hood and walking toward the creek.

Once there, she lowered the hood from her head, biting at her lip harder with each step that brought her closer to the creek.

Her lip was swollen and red when she finally stood over it; Sakura closed her eyes and breathed to calm her nerves. A second later, she bent forward and stared at the girl that stared back at her where her reflection should've been. She gasped, taking a couple of steps back to get her bearings before stepping over it and scrutinizing.

This girl—

Sakura didn't recognize her.

Her cheekbones were beginning to stick out with a mixture of losing chubby baby cheeks and malnutrition; lilac bags formed under her eyes—green eyes that looked too dull to be her own. But there was something that was going to haunt her for what she was more than positive would be the rest of her life—there wasn't a strand of pink hair on top of her head.

Instead, what fell in choppy layers to hover just above her shoulders were maroon-brown strands.

This—this girl…

Sakura rubbed at her cheeks and stared at the yellow-blue bruise; the only proof of her and Sasuke's escape from Konoha.

But…

This girl…

She wasn't Haruno Sakura.

This girl… She didn't think she could ever remember seeing such a jaded person in her life; half a lifetime's worth of a story filled with hurt and blood and sadness.

Who was she?

She didn't realize she'd sat down, curling into herself and crying. Tears flowed and her chest constricted with sorrow—for herself. For the first time in such a long time, she cried for herself and no one else. Because this wasn't the life she'd envisioned all those years ago. This was like torture—like punishment for doing something wrong; for breaking her friendship with Ino, for concentrating on her looks instead of her training, for dumping so much weight on Naruto's shoulder, for being so goddamn weak.

Sakura choked on her sobs, shoulders trembling with the exhaustion of keeping them in.

Time passed, and with every second that turned into a minute that turned into an hour, she shed a tear—she cried until she was weary, and she only stopped when she heard footsteps heading toward her, leaves and twigs crunching under the soles of the boots.

She sniffed and angrily swiped at her tears, rubbing at her eyes until she felt—or, rather, lied to herself—that she didn't look like she'd just been crying her heart out.

"Did you get your water?"

His tone almost—_almost_—sounded accusing; _are you too weak for that, too, Sakura_?

She swallowed, sniffling again and nodding her head. She stood up, swiping any clunks of soft dirt and mud from her backside. "I did—I was just debating whether to bathe or not."

Sasuke was staring at the creek, but quickly turned to face her, dark eyes back to their piercing black—no haze or discomfort in sight. She watched as he studied her face; she knew what he saw. Puffy, red-rimmed eyes, pink nose and glossy cheeks where the tears had begun to carve their trails. Or maybe it was the fact that her hair was a mixture of brown and red with no pink in sight.

He didn't say anything, which was a first.

Sakura admitted to herself that she had been bracing herself for something ruthless—something along the lines of being weak. Because she was, wasn't she? She was so weak.

It was silent between them, tension filling the space separating them as they stood as far apart as they could. With the time that passed, the sun settled into its hiding place and the moon elegantly took its place above them all.

Sasuke scoffed after a while, shaking his head and turning away. "Do what you want. I'm going to sleep."

.

.

.

The first watch was left to her.

Sakura had settled into taking a cool, quick dip into the creek, washing away any flaws that escaped through her pores and tried to eat at her skin until she was left naked and bare, with nothing but bones and muscles to call her own. And even then, that belonged to all the bad things that brought her down.

The night was cool and Sakura wrapped her cloak around herself as she sat atop the thick branch of one of the many enormous trees. She closed her eyes every now and then, salvaging the feel of the cool breeze caressing her still-damp hair. And sometimes, she'd stare down at Sasuke's form, lost in the shadows as he hid under his cloak.

But mostly, she sat there and wondered. Her thoughts revolved around everyone she loved—was Tsunade awake yet? Was Ino frantically trying to create a search party to find her, become backup when the new bounty over her head became the new fad? Was Naruto alright? Did Kakashi lose his book when he was ambushed and taken away?

But it's only been two days, now.

How much could the world change in two days?

.

.

.

And when it was her turn to sleep, Sakura dreamt of black—nothing else—just pure black.

Like static—present and overpowering.

.

.

.

"We'll arrive in Oto in two days if we keep up this route."

Sakura bit at the inside of her cheek and pondered. The last place she wished to arrive to was the ruined, makeshift village that Orochimaru created for the sole purpose of his experiments. The place was still too much for her—thoughts of first reunions, bitter tastes and emotional, jagged wounds were still alive somewhere inside her.

Oto made her think of the ragtag team she and Naruto made. It made her think of trust and it made her think of Sai.

Sakura didn't want any of that blinding her more than she already was.

She lowered her head and hid behind the shadows of her hood, shaking her head and letting out a soft sound of disapproval. She grabbed for her glass of water and listened as Sasuke shifted in his seat. "We're heading to Kumo."

"Kumo?"

Sakura closed her eyes and turned her head to face him slightly. "The Raikage is not…too fond of Konoha. Much less Naruto."

Sasuke said nothing to this. And they both sat there, listening to the buzz of a million conversations, their own names dancing around them—mockingly.

* * *

Thanks again to my beautiful unicorn, Paige! Who loves to scare the bananas out of me by randomly sending me the beta'd files =_=  
I love her, can you tell?

Also, thanks so much for the feedback, guys; you're all amazing! Now, while you read AND REVIEW, I'm gonna go finish my screwdriver. c;

EDIT: waiiiit. Lemme just say this here: the geography to Naruto? I changed it; like, I literally went crazy on it and just got all the villages I like together and put the other ones wherever they'd find a spot. So... Yes.


	4. born under a bad sign

**4**

Kumo's gates loomed over them, thick boulders jagged and rough.

One over the other, put together without much care, if only to allow the world to know that Kumo looked down at them from up the mountain tops. The gates looked as if they'd crumble to the ground at any second if one so much as had the desire to stare at the insignia—carved right at the center of the thickest, oval-shaped boulder at the top.

Sakura looked up at it as it stood at the base of the mountain trails, taunting every passerby.

"This is my first time in Kumo," she murmured, fixing her cloak so it covered her entirely.

Next to her, Sasuke looked around at the other travelers passing to and fro—some went through the gates and headed up the trails, others took East or West and evaded the village all together. He lowered his head, hiding himself in the shadow of his hood and took a step forward. "C'mon, if we move now, we'll get halfway up to the village by dusk."

Sakura bit at her lower lip and curled into her cloak before following him.

.

.

.

When nightfall came, Sasuke halted their steady trek by grabbing at her arm and pulling her back. The trails were empty, save for the stray pedestrian that would continue to march on. But they were shinobi and, even worse, rogue, so they had to be constantly on guard and well rested to expect the unexpected.

Sakura turned her head and looked over the edge of the road; they'd climb so high—her ears popped constantly, but she'd gotten so used to it in the hours of walking. She barely paid attention to it now. With night cascading over them, there weren't signs of a single cloud—but Sakura was positive the scenery was beautiful when the sun was out and the sky was at its bluest.

She turned away from the view and walked to where Sasuke was sitting against the coarse base of one of the many mountains. They were behind a thick line of bushes, almost hidden from view. Sakura looked around for a second before sinking down, feet away from him.

The night was cold against her skin, even with it hidden under her cloak; she could feel the corners of her eyes water, every blink stinging. She curled into herself—into a tiny ball and made sure to wrap every inch of her being. Next to her, she caught Sasuke already dozing off.

She pursed her lips and unwounded her position and closed her eyes. She pretended the cold didn't burn and dreamt of black again.

.

.

.

The village left her in awe.

Pausing, she stared with wide, green eyes at the building structures built around and within the mountains—blue and steel and gold and burgundy red, all hidden behind clouds floating by without a single care for the world. Sakura didn't think she'd ever seen something so beautiful.

"Move it, lady."

Sakura was brought out of her stupor as a villager bumped into her—shoving her a few steps to the side and continuing his trek as if nothing happened. She furrowed her brow and narrowed her eyes, curling her lips into a sneer but said nothing; she massaged her shoulder and searched for Sasuke, glare intact.

Such a beautiful village, but its villagers were plain out _rude_.

Sasuke was a standing to the side, next to a shop, hidden in the shadows and his cloak, waiting for her. She quickly composed herself, lowering her head and walking toward him; though she bared no insignia of her affiliation—she refused to accept that she had no association with her village, because rogues never had associations other than themselves. She refused, she refused, she refused—if any shinobi…

…No, that wasn't it.

She shouldn't really lie to herself, should she?

She hid because she refused to allow herself to be recognized.

Once at his side, Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her, his eyes blank as he spared her a glance before concentrating on a spot over her shoulder.

"It's nothing," she whispered, turning her attention to the shop. It wasn't until she fully realized it was a food-stand that her stomach growled and the fact that she was hungry settled into her mind. As she turned back to Sasuke, she realized that he was in the same state. "Let's… We need to eat, before anything."

He gave a curt nod, head bowed to hide his face.

They slid onto the stools, backs stiff with tension as their guards reached their peak. When the stand owner turned to them, Sakura courteously ordered two bowls of curry. She watched the brittle woman walk around a brick wall and to what Sakura assumed was the kitchen, from under her lashes. She waited for a moment before she turned her head to the left, tilting it slightly to allow her to speak to her companion, quietly, and still be heard.

"We're looking for two specific Kumo shinobi," she whispered, lips barely moving. "I… Never quite got their names, but I remember perfectly well what they look like."

Sasuke shifted in his seat, clearing his throat. "I don't care—let's just do this fast. I don't want to be here longer than I have to."

At this, Sakura paused, lifting her chin and staring up at him. He did seem rather off—more than normal. Sasuke wasn't really putting up a fight with her wild goose chase of a mission, and she assumed this was because he wanted to find Naruto as well. If not, then it was out of gratitude for what she did for him.

But ever since she declared their destination being the arrogant village hidden in the clouds, she noticed he'd become… Or maybe she was just seeing things. Sakura tried to read his body language, but it's been three years since she and Sasuke ever cooperated—if it was even called that—together. They were both two very different people from who they were when they were twelve.

Sakura couldn't read him as well as she used to.

She bit her lip and turned away, managing a small smile as the elderly woman brought them their food.

.

.

.

The rest of the afternoon was uneventful, leaving Sakura with anxiety eating at her nerves and the term 'staying put' disappearing from her vocabulary. She was wandering the village on her own; it was all she could do when Sasuke refused to leave the room they rented with what little money they had left.

She'd declared they'd visit a bar once nightfall fell upon them and she didn't wait for his reply before she left.

Now, she walked around villagers, watching them interact and trying hard not to compare them to Konoha. And then a lump would form on her throat and she'd forget she was supposed to have her guard up, eyes piercing as she looked for those… God, what were their names?

She bit her lip and furrowed her brow. Their names didn't matter—if she saw them, if she caught flashes of crimson red and silver white, then she'd know.

.

.

.

By the time they sat on barstools and entertained their beverages, Sakura was at the mercy of her annoyance.

She curled her arm around her drink, eyes counting the rings of the thick bar-table's bark. Her hearing was on overdrive as she tried to listen to anything that would help her in her search and any news on her village. Her jaw clenched at that last part. She was so naïve and so stupid—when was she going to learn?

But roughly five days of being a rogue wasn't going to kill old habits—especially when she was reluctant to let go.

And she had to, didn't she? She had to let go because she wasn't going back until she found Naruto and Kakashi—she wasn't going back unless she was being dragged, half-dead and beaten until unrecognizable. Konoha was everything but her home right now, and she needed to accept this so she could stop being a nuisance to herself and get her work done.

They spoke about their Kage a lot; Raikage this, Raikage that. Sakura disposed of the information as soon as it clicked in her mind and it labeled it as useless. And they spoke about B a lot, too. Praises and sometimes even scorns and hisses and about his music and rap. Sakura didn't think she knew who he was, let alone if she wanted to.

She caught Sasuke bring his glass to his lips from her peripheral vision. On the surface of the table, his hand rested, curled into a fist and tightly clenched. He was annoyed—the place was noisy, she wouldn't be surprised that Sasuke was growing irritated with each second that passed.

She sipped at her drink and turned her attention to the side, trying to concentrate on the millions of conversations going on at once.

Her attention was caught by the rough walls—the entire back wall was the mountain itself, she decided, peering at it with minor fascination. The tables and the seats were barbarically built out of tree trunks—the bark was still on it, scratching at her skin when she least expected it.

Kumo was just that—vicious and without any sort of etiquette.

They were all about strength and the bad temper that reinforced them; they were about making sure no one was right but them and making sure no one thought any different. They were about outranking each other—they were egotistical fools.

"Ha!" At the laugh, Sakura paused, shoulders hunching. She noticed Sasuke pause for a brief moment before setting his tankard back to the table.

"You wouldn't say that if Karui was here, now, would ya?" There went the laugh again. "She'd set you straight before you could even finish insulting her _precious—"_

Sakura stopped paying attention right then. Her blood ran cold—frozen—before it began to pump through her veins in an unhealthy manner. She felt a headache forming at the back of her head and her throat running dry—that name… It was awfully familiar and she was running on pure instinct in believing this was the person she was looking for.

Red hair, amber eyes, and a punch that cracked jaws.

And she wasn't in the village.

Sakura's molars ground against each other, the twitching noise lost as the bar began to get rowdy. Before she could settle in the fact that her travel had been in vain and the annoyance warping into anger, she caught Sasuke push his drink away from him and stand up. He muttered something incoherent before he was out the door.

Her irritation reached its peak, but she swallowed it whole and walked out after him, frustration consuming her.

.

.

.

Lying in bed, she tried to think where Danzo would send her lost teammates off—because killing them was out of the question. Actually, killing them would be too easy for him; Danzo liked to make people wait.

Drag it all out until the perfect moment to strike; break inner spirit to make himself look righteous as he came in for the kill. Naruto wasn't easy to kill and neither was Kakashi; they were alive somewhere. Kept under heavy guard and with some sort of jutsu to keep them from escaping. Chakra depleting strings, genjutsu—something, anything.

Somewhere.

Sakura fell asleep wishing life was easy.

.

.

.

It was five thirty in the morning, her internal clock said, as she stirred from her sleep. She sat up, eyes ignoring the desire to close up and fall back into the familiar black abyss.

When she turned her head to the other cot, her body went frigid as she realized she was alone.

* * *

GUYS PAIGE THINKS ITS FUN TO SCARE ME. I received this file on my phone while I was shopping and I jumped OTL

As usual, thank you so much for the feedback AND I APOLOGIZE FOR THE UPDATE SPAMS. My writer's block is close to gone, so I'm actually... Writing again. Please review, my loves :3


	5. everybody loves a clown

**5**

There was ringing in her ears—prominent and jaw clenching.

Sakura was breathing through her mouth as she tried to pull her clothes together and grab whatever little necessities she had with her. Maroon locks blurred her vision, but Sakura didn't—couldn't—pay any attention to them.

She sprinted out the door, making a sloppy pause as she whipped her head from left to right before following the steep trails down to Earth. The streets were empty, but Sakura didn't care—didn't even pay any attention to it as she concentrated solely on her speed.

She felt she was going to fall over, do flips and fall off the edge to her impenetrable doom. And yet, Sakura continued to run; her calves tensed with strain and her lungs demanded more air than she could breathe in one gulp.

But she had to do this—she had to push her body to the limit.

When did he leave? Sakura was positive she didn't fall into an uncomfortable sleep until way after midnight. It was close to dawn… He couldn't be far, could he?

He couldn't…

But he was Sasuke.

Nothing could weigh him down. He was agile, he was lean and he was an Uchiha. And Uchihas were everything that anyone could ever want to be in the world of shinobi.

He could be anywhere by now.

Sakura's eyes narrowed into slits, tears forming in the corner of her eyes from the stinging her momentum brought. But she ignored it, going down steady and making sharp turns where the trail turned and turned. She was breathing through her mouth—_hah, hah, hah, hah, hah—_gasping and choking for air.

A migraine was forming in the back of her head but she ignored it—she ignored it like she ignored the ringing and the popping as she descended.

She made a sharp turn and slipped—losing her balance and skidding; she flipped over, in the air, as she hit a bulge in the ground. She groaned aloud as she slewed into a halt mere inches from the edge of the trail. Sakura sighed, loud and long and weary before slumping over and letting the pain of the burns and bruises sink in.

"Fuck," she moaned, lifting herself up and watching as the dust settled onto the ground after her disturbance. She swiped a hand down her entire right side, flinching at the burn. But that's all she had time to do before she picked up her speed and continued.

.

.

.

When she finally arrived to solid ground, hundreds of feet below, Sakura was out of breath and cramping.

She'd made quick stops every other hour, more to regain her breath and try to uncramp her limbs, than anything else. But she couldn't possibly pause—not because she had to catch up to Sasuke, but because she couldn't—not right then, she'd cause a horrible injury. Clenching her eyes closed, she tried to push her body to its very limit.

She didn't expect to crash into something solid that sent her into the air, hitting the ground with a heavy thud.

.

.

.

"Ugh," she groaned, blinking her eyes once—twice—thrice to get rid of her stupor. It hurt to breathe, but she ignored it as she slowly began to get up.

"What the serious _fuck_." There was a grunt. "Shut the hell up, Omoi, and quit your goddamn laughing!"

Sakura's eyes snapped open and she whirled around in her crouch, standing up fast enough to give her a head rush. Impatience overtook her when the image refused to unblur, but at the sight of the redhead and the boy with the silver-white hair, her heart jumped at her throat.

She felt the urge to vomit her intestines out, but she figured that was more of a reaction from her unhealthy traveling method. Sakura felt clammy and horrible, but she didn't care. She pushed everything aside, because she had to. Because there was a mission she had to take care of.

And even if she had been after Sasuke—

—Even if she _was_ after Sasuke, this came first. Because this is what she came for.

"You," she finally said when she found her voice.

The redhead looked up, sharp amber eyes staring at her with minor interest and much annoyance. "Who the hell are you, girlie?"

Sakura tried to speak again, but nothing came out of her mouth when she parted her lips. She felt her throat dry and her chest was heaving as she continued her attempts to breathe evenly. But something had to be done—if she kept this up, they'd get bored and leave.

_I'm not weak,_ she whispered to herself.

_I'm not weak._

_I'm not weak!_

"Uzumaki Naruto!"

There was a pregnant pause and Sakura took advantage of it to grab her bearings and self-control. Her breathing leveled out and she felt as her inner strength began to flow evenly through her body. Her migraine was still intact, but light enough to push it back and ignore it. And Sakura decided it was now or never.

Across from her, the redhead's eyes narrowed in either confusion or annoyance. Perhaps both.

"What?"

"Uzumaki Naruto," Sakura repeated, clearer and with her head held high. "Do you know anything about his whereabouts?"

"I don't even know who—"

"Oi, Karui," Omoi hissed, head tilted as he glued his eyes onto Sakura. "I think she means that blond runt from the Leaf village."

Sakura's eyes narrowed at this, skin prickling with gooseflesh as something cold ran down her spine. She took a couple of steps forward, not paying attention to how bold she was coming off as. "Yes—Uzumaki Naruto of the Leaf village. Do you—is your Raikage in any way affiliated with the current Hokage in keeping him away from Konoha?"

Karui furrowed her brow, a deep frown on her lips. She placed her hands on her hips in a manner that reminded Sakura so much of Ino. "Pfft—wait, now I remember, you're the girl I knocked out with one punch. What're you doin' here?"

"Can you stop ignoring the bigger picture?!" Sakura stomped a foot to the ground, ignoring the crack it made and concentrating every ounce of her attention to Karui. "This is a serious matter—please, I just want to know if your village has anything to do with Naruto's disappearance."

She watched Karui's eyes narrow into slits, her body going rigid and ready to fight. Next to her, her teammate stared at them both with an apathetic expression.

"My village wouldn't want anything to do with the little shit," Karui hissed, taking steps toward Sakura. "We wouldn't want pathetic Leaf shinobi soiling our lands—much less would we work with your pathetic Hokage. Your stupid friend probably got himself killed with his mediocre skills and his obnoxious compass—"

Sakura didn't know when she got so close.

She didn't know when she stopped breathing.

She didn't even know when she'd lunged and punched Karui with all the force she could muster in blind fury.

Karui flew back a few feet from where she'd stood, falling onto her back and trying to sit up a few times before giving up and lying still, eyes rolled back and consciousness lost. Sakura, still seething, watched as her jaw began to swell in a way that promised something broken underneath.

Sakura straightened, tilting her head to the left and then the right as she cracked the kinks out of her neck. She slowly turned to face Omoi who continued to watch the entire scene with a clinical look, though his hands were clenched at his sides and the toothpick between his teeth snapped.

"I—"

Omoi's eyes locked with hers.

"I didn't—"

Sakura was more than surprised to realize he didn't move. Even more so, when he didn't try to attack. His eyes were glued to hers, body language tense.

And when he closed his eyes, it was like a strained, contained message—_Karui was out of line but damn if you didn't piss me off. Get out of my sight._

So she fled.

* * *

AAAAAND ONCE AGAIN PAIGE OFF SCARING PRETTY GLITTER FAIRIES D: BUT LET'S ALL THANK HER ANYWAY

Also, news: I have recently found my old lost docs. Like, With Me, ect. So... Hopefully, this will strike my muse's fancy and kick my block out of my head. So... Yeah! As usual, thank you very much for the amazing support. And please review~


	6. children shouldn't play with dead things

**6**

Sasuke paused on top of one of the highest tree branches, a hand placed on the trunk to brace himself. It was raining—heavier than a drizzle and lighter than a downpour—the perfect hint that he was heading straight towards Amegakure. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath and concentrated on the smell of musk.

Whenever he closed his eyes, he almost always expected to feel the stinging pain he'd undergone when he'd first wandered around without the binds around his eyes. It felt like he had gone blind and was barely getting his vision back; as if his eyes were literally on fire and blinking only strengthened the flames.

Now all that was left, upon closing his eyes, was a heavy feeling—it was almost inexplicable, but Sasuke wouldn't trade it for the burning. This was soothing.

He sighed snapping his eyes open and looking around the forest for some sort of shelter; he didn't think his cloak would keep him safe for the rest of the night and the last thing he needed was to get sick. Slowly, to not risk slipping on the wet bark, he descended until he was on solid ground. The squelching noise of his boots landing on mud made him flinch.

He normally liked the rain, but when he was in the forest—he actually despised it. It was too messy; easy to leave tracks of your whereabouts when you were on the run. An easy target; Sasuke hated being an easy target.

Sasuke continued his trek with a slow jog, only pausing when he found a cabin with fallen trees and logs surrounding it. His eyes narrowed, nearing it and looking around with cautious eyes. He still hadn't used his Sharingan—something held him back; what if his eyes began to hurt—what if everything blurred, like it kept blurring before Sakura turned…

He paused at the thought, lips pressing into a thin line and brow furrowing as he looked downwards at the messy mixture of grass and mud. It wasn't that he continued to think Sakura had actually committed such a deed. And it wasn't that he fully trusted his old teammate. It was really all about facts. Sakura had changed but, regardless, was still the same girl—loyal to a fault. And perhaps she had a point in saying had she truly aimed to put him right at the center of Danzo's palm, she wouldn't have risked her life to get him out.

His train of thought rewound… _What if everything blurred, like it kept blurring before_ _Danzo_ _captured him._

That blurring—it caused his molars to grind against each other; like listening to nails running across a chalkboard. He didn't think he wanted to feel that way, again—so he held off on using his Sharingan and trusted his shinobi instincts.

Sasuke stood in front of the door for a minute, straining his ears to listen to any movements—any breathing. He slammed his shoulder to it—forcing the door open and stepped inside, surveying the disarray. It looked more than abandoned—dust coated every surface and turned everything pale gray under what little of the moon's lighting escaped passed the thick rain clouds.

He stepped inside, closing the door behind him as he continued to look around. There was a cot—layers and layers of blankets all in a mess on the ground. Across from it, and closest to the door, was a table with a chair, on top of it was a bowl with rotten fruits on top and flies resting atop it.

Sasuke deemed it an alright space for him to rest and wait for the rain to calm. He made his way to the blankets, kicking them around to get the dust off of them before dropping down into a sitting position, head leaning against the wall and eyes closed. He didn't think about Sakura—he didn't think she'd make a detour from her oh so grand mission to look for him.

Why would she—what did he have to do with anything, anyway?

Parting was for the best; Sasuke didn't know what he was going to do with himself from there on out, but it was better than nothing.

.

.

.

Sleeping was hard when he wasn't really sleeping; rather, reliving the past.

And it wasn't the past Sasuke was used to—it wasn't all dark nights and blood splattered everywhere. It wasn't watching Mother and Father atop each other, drenched in their own blood, with their eyes still opened but any life within them gone. It wasn't the inexplicable feeling of loss and lost and disorientation and confusing reality with a sick twisted dream.

It wasn't about numbing and lying to himself that he'd wake up at some point and Mother would be in the kitchen and Father would be willing to try to help him with his Katon.

This one was different.

This one was about dying brothers poking his head after the fight of their lives—it was… It was about all the anger and resent suddenly escaping from his body as Itachi gave mercy to him and let him know what really happened. It was about Konoha elders and Uchiha coups and a young boy becoming the model shinobi mercenary and an even younger boy losing his innocence and his mind.

This dream—this past—this last moment of peace with his older brother was present somewhere in his mind. Like a stamp imprinted onto his skin and his brain with permanent ink.

And he didn't know what to feel—he felt… he felt like Itachi didn't deserve anything and he felt like he wasted half of his life hating his brother when he really shouldn't and—

—And then he'd wake up with a cold sweat.

.

.

.

It hadn't been long before Sasuke gave up and settled for the measly two hours of sleep. He stood up, cracking every kink in his body before walking towards the door.

The rain had settled down to a misty drizzle and the wind was almost harsh as it blew to and fro, angrily. Sasuke stood at the entrance of the cabin and stared without really staring. The leaves of the trees danced, hypnotically—left and right and left, falling to the ground when they got tired. They blew around without a destination and Sasuke cruelly wondered if that's how he's looked like for half of his life.

He extended a hand outward, watching as the tiny droplets gathered in the middle of his palm until it made a small puddle. Swiftly, he closed his grip, listening to the gush of the water as it tried to find a way out of the pressure. Sasuke's jaw clenched and he took off, into the darkness of the forest.

.

.

.

He was little ways from the village—about two miles, if not one more or one less.

Sasuke tried to concentrate on the horizon, rather than his forelocks sticking to his forehead and the sky lightening up as the sun slowly began to ascend. He decided that any thought was moot, until he reached the village and rented a room at an inn. Then he could think—then he could plan—then he could make a move. Something—anything.

Static wasn't Sasuke's thing—or maybe he wasn't adapting to life after finishing what he had concentrated on for years.

Maybe he didn't know what to do with himself—

The earth shook and Sasuke lost his balance as dirt and dust began to cloud the air.

He could have sworn he saw pink.

* * *

Hello, foolish mortals. Thank you, once again, for your amazing support! So I come with short chapters because short chapters work for me.

Anyway. Sasuke's first interlude. Despite having nine chapters written, I haven't figured out how his interludes will work. BUT HAVE SOME SASUKE ANYWAY. And I'd like to remind you guys that I _did_ change the geography of the Naruto world because I am a boss. (:

Please review, tell me what you think, GIVE ME THEORIES and stuff like that. I love youse.


	7. dream a little dream of me

**7**

The rain was freezing—her speed and the wind making goose-flesh prickle her skin. But Sakura swore she couldn't feel it; everything was numb. The rain was harsh, like razor sharp crystals falling over her and splintering her skin; and yet Sakura couldn't feel it. To her frozen limbs it felt like something that happened and all that was left was the ghost of its touch. A memory that it had once been there.

She figured it was her rage.

It was consuming her.

Bubbling through her system like molten lava—so scorching hot and addicting.

It didn't let her feel Ame's weather and it didn't let her think and it didn't let her see.

Because she swore she saw only red; like blood tainting every inch, every nook and cranny, of the world. Everything was crimson red and there was this side of her… It was small and meek and mediocre, but it was there nonetheless and it wondered… It wondered if this was how Sasuke saw the world; bloody red with crimson skies and vermillion grounds.

And just as it tried to voice out its curiosity, the rage that Sakura carried squashed it without remorse and took over; fueled her energy and fueled her speed until she was positive she was an element dancing within the speed of sound.

Her teeth were gritted; clenched tight to the point where she should be feeling intense pain but she wasn't—god, she wasn't feeling anything at all but anger. She didn't feel the cold or the exhaustion of not only her unhealthy traveling methods, but the weight of everything that's wrong with her life; she felt nothing.

Something like a grunt escaped her as she swung herself from one thick branch to the other. She almost slipped, but the fact was lost to her as her body completely froze at the sight below her.

Everything in her life was about chances.

Crazy chances that just happened—that's how she's survived this long.

And finding Uchiha Sasuke, like she found him at that very instance, was pure chance.

Sakura took it with opened arms. Her fury devoured her and wrath and impulsion took over.

That's why she spiraled downwards and crushed the earth with her feet.

.

.

.

The rubbles weren't done falling to the ground before she swung her fist.

She missed, but she had been expecting that.

Sakura didn't have a doujutsu and she rarely used ninjutsu; she was good at genjutsu but she felt she had a knack for taijutsu. Her heart and mind always thanked Lee for the special training, and now, as she began to throw barrages of punches and kicks, she thanked him once again. Even if a very large portion of her wondered if, given the chance to watch her, his chest would swell with pride with their current circumstances.

At her distraction, she felt Sasuke grab one of her wrists and swung her away from his person.

She grunted as she landed in a crouch, cracks forming under her boots. Anger rose within her once again as the realization hit her.

He wasn't hitting her back.

Sakura sprinted towards him, fist glowing green with her chakra.

She swung and missed and a heartbeat later, she tried for a kick; he slapped her leg away, blocked another of her fists, jumped out of the way of a chakra covered one, disappeared out of sight and the cycle continued whenever she found him again.

"Goddamnit," she yelled, stomping a foot and causing another crater, "Fight me! You're a _coward_, Uchiha Sasuke—god damn you!"

Her eyes, narrowed into slits, blurred by tears of fury and by stringy strands of maroon-brown hair, locked with his. They were their pitch black, hollow and empty; his lips were pressed together and his hair shadowed his features as he dodged and ducked and blocked and smacked her blows away.

She gulped air into her lungs, twirling around to try and land a kick on him. He blocked it, placing the thickest part of his forearm in front of her leg; she heard his soft grunt, lips pursing. Sakura jumped in the air, clasping her hands together and intertwining her fingers. A cry escaped her as she dropped her fists down, growling in rage when she hit the jagged dirt ground.

Her blows were getting sloppy to the point where it wasn't even taijutsu anymore, but just blinded strikes by a blinded girl. Like a tantrum, even.

She paused, chest heaving as she bent forwards, trying to regain her breath. Sakura closed her eyes and concentrated on the droplets dripping down her temples, the slope of her nose, the nape of her neck, the valley in between her breasts. She had to wonder how much was her sweat and how much was the rain falling over them like a curtain. She coughed, the last of it hitching in her throat as she felt his presence appear behind her.

Without breathing—without thinking—she spun around and tackled him, locking her legs around his hips and clenching her hands around his shoulders.

.

.

.

Sakura knew she'd been out of her league the entire time.

It was just that her anger didn't let her care; it was just that she didn't think there was anything left to lose. It _wasn't_ that she had faith in Sasuke in controlling himself into not attacking her; because she didn't even think she trusted him enough for that. She was positive he'd of punched her and thrown her around until she was battered and bruised and bloody.

But he didn't.

And even then, her wrath didn't let her fully grasp that.

Even then, she knew she was coiled around him because he let her.

Her hands tightened around his shoulders.

"You left me," she yelled at him, as they rolled on the ground, rocks and uneven surfaces digging into their flesh. "You left me _again_!"

The rain was falling harder, now. Mud coated them like second skin, sticking blades of grass every other inch of their body.

His silence made Sakura grit her teeth, yanking him upwards and then downwards as she screeched in her attempts to free all the frustration that swirled inside every corner of her insides. Sasuke's hands snapped up, wrapping around her wrists and tightening his hold until Sakura gasped and sobbed.

He hovered above her, lips pressed together, corners tilted downwards and his eyes dark and empty. Sakura looked up at him, sight blurring as tears began to spill uncontrollably and without her command. "I can't stand you," she screamed, arching her back, "You—I saved you—I saved you and don't you goddamn say I put you in there because I didn't! I didn't—I wouldn't… I would _never_! I got you out of there—I risked everything; every little thing I had left and it wasn't much, I swear it wasn't much but it was something. And I risked it to save you; to get us both out of there and you _left_ me!

"_Why are you so goddamn selfish_?! I have _never_ asked for anything—I just… I just…"

Sakura broke off as she choked on her uncontrollable sobs, letting her back fall back down to the ground in a squelching thud. Her shoulders wracked and she thrashed, screaming and crying until she was positive her throat was growing raw.

"I'm not—" she sobbed, gasping for air. "I'm not crying for you—I swear on my life I'm not. I—this—this—I just… I just…"

And the world went black.

.

.

.

The training ground was destroyed, dirt ground broken, uneven, jagged and filled with small craters. A couple of trees were on the ground, demolished with the roots twisting in the air, clumps of dirt still stuck to them. Kunais and shurikens scattered around them and Sakura crouched down, to the side of the scenery, trying to regain her breath.

"That was amazing," he said, his blue eyes staring at the disaster they created. His smile was crooked, messy blond hair dirty with blood and mud. "That was amazing—you're really awesome, Sakura-chan."

Sakura scoffed. "Sure, why not?"

"No, I'm serious!" He stood up, taking his tattered sweater off. "You seriously pack a wallop; I'm still seeing stars! When'd you get so strong, Sakura-chan?!"

She shook her head, looking down at her worn out gloves as her hands curled into fists at her knees. "Shut up, moron."

When she looked up, Naruto's grin had sobered up and a look of pure concentration took its place. His eyes were downcast, blond lashes hiding the secrets they could have been telling. He looked almost torn and Sakura quickly stood up and walked to close the gap between them. "Hey, what's wrong, Naruto?"

He shook his head, looking up at her with a small grin that wasn't all that much like him. "I'm just really glad you're this strong, Sakura-chan. You can definitely take care of yourself now and that makes me happy." He curled an arm around her shoulders, bringing her close until their sides were pressed together. "I'm real proud of ya, you know? Now, let's go eat ramen, okay?"

Sakura looked up at him, brows furrowed but a small, wary smile finding its way onto her lips nonetheless. She didn't know how long she stared at him for, just walking out of the training grounds and back into the village, cuts and bruises and dirt coating them both. She didn't bother with watching where she was going; Naruto was practically carrying her to the ramen stand.

She nodded, swallowing a bit thickly. "Okay."

.

.

.

She woke up with a deep inhale, eyes snapping wide open.

She was staring at a wall; wherever she was, it was dark and as she took a minute to grab her bearings, she realized it was pouring outside. The thick pelts of droplets pounding into the windows and the concrete surfaces of the walls. She was in Ame, and this was most probably an inn and—everything came back to her, and, in an instance, she sat up.

Had he left her again—he did, didn't he.

Sasuke was such a cold hearted bastard; he knocked her out and dumped her in the first inn he found. She grit her teeth, running her hands through her hair and taking uneven breaths in her attempts to calm herself down. This—she should have expected this; it was Sasuke, after all, right?

And—

She felt not only someone's stare, on her, but with her shinobi instincts drowsily waking up, she felt someone's presence from her left side. Sakura slowly turned her head, her hands clenching into fists at her sides. Instantly, she began to growl insults at herself for being so careless. It was such a big rule for a shinobi—always be aware of your surroundings. This… This could be… A rapist—the inn keeper—another guest—who—

It was Sasuke.

Sasuke sat in a half slouch on the other bed, back leaning against the wall, and as dirtied with mud as he had been in their one-sided fight. He stared at her with the same blank expression that he always wore, hair messy and dirty with clumps of dirt and dried up mud.

Sakura swallowed.

"H-hi," she croaked, inwardly astonished at how raspy and horrible her voice sounded.

He didn't reply, rather, he gave the smallest—barely noticeable—inclination of his head and slowly turned back to stare outside the window. It was dark, now, and the only reason Sakura knew this was because the skies had darkened considerably; she'd forgotten how hard it was to tell time with Ame's consistent rainy weather.

"I don't," she scooted closer towards the edge of the bed. "I don't get—"

"Shut up, Sakura."

She did so, but not because he said to. She did it because she had to think things through, add things up and come up with her answers because Sasuke wasn't going to give her any, and she knew that. But the facts were all there—he was there, with her, when he could have been halfway to another village, away from her and everything she stood for, for him; like the past he tried so hard to erase from his memory. And yet he was _there._

He was there.

Which meant…

Her nostrils flared, but she refused to cry, again. "Thank you."

He didn't reply or gave any sort of clue that he'd heard her.

Thank you; she wanted to say it again. Repeat it like a mantra because she was—she was so thankful. So goddamn thankful.

She sighed, leaning back and looking up at the ceiling for a few seconds before closing her eyes. Her mind pulsed as everything continued to flood every corner of her brain. Her body was terribly exhausted; her limbs ached and her muscles pulsed. Just the mere shift in position overexerted her.

Anger still burned through her system; she didn't think it'd leave anytime soon, this rage. It was what fueled her, now, what kept her going. Anger—rage and all its different faces—it was required when you were living life on the run, life in hiding and devoted to find your best friend.

"Tomorrow, we will get supplies. For now, just go back to sleep."

Sakura clenched her eyes shut, lips pressed into a thin line as she hung onto Sasuke's voice as it echoed in her head.


	8. houses of the holy

**8**

Konoha was bright, that day.

But it was all lost to Ino as she curled in the corner of the shower, letting the water and the steam drown her as she cried out all her frustration and hate. Because it was consuming her—god, sometimes she could feel it devouring her; when she was quiet and unmoving, she could feel her insides twisting and turning and bubbling with self-hate.

Week three—three weeks, twenty one days, five-hundred-and-four hours.

Sakura's been missing—gone—disappeared—defected for three weeks.

Ino was still trying to figure out when her failure as a friend started. And, honestly, it was what was eating her now. It wasn't that Sakura left—broke Uchiha Sasuke out of his jail, caused a fight and disturbed the masses and fought her way out tooth and nail. That was Sakura—if anyone thought otherwise, they didn't know her at all.

Sakura did what she had to do to keep those she loved safe.

That was Haruno Sakura.

But what ate Ino from the inside out was that she lost that piece of knowledge and actually felt her best friend was just like every other two-faced shinobi out there. What killed her was that she had actually believed Sakura had captured Sasuke and brought him back—hey, anything to bring him home, right?

What made Ino hate herself, was that she had no clue where Sakura was in that fucked up Shinobi World out there and she had no idea if she was okay.

Ino sobbed, clenching her molars together to keep a scream down her throat. Her hair draped around her like a blanket, stringy and drenched as the water kept falling from above. Sometimes it got so bad, she stayed in there for the entire day, just letting the hot water turn her pale skin red, letting the steam curl and curl until it became so hard to breathe.

Today looked like one of those days.

Everything was all wrong—everything had been so wrong—everything continued to be all wrong.

She didn't know how long she sat there for, everything blended in with each other to the point where it didn't matter. But along the way, the door to the bathroom opened; Ino was too lost to even realize it. She didn't hear the rings holding the shower-curtain up sliding to the side, didn't hear the low curse as the water shut off and a towel was wrapped around her.

"Ino, oh for god's sake. Here, let's get you out of there." There was a sigh. "God, why do you have to be so troublesome?"

Ino sniffed, letting Shikamaru wrap the lilac-colored towel around her body, letting him lead her out the bathroom and to her room and letting him sit her down on the edge of her bed. She looked down at her toes and at the ugly burnt-orange colored rug under them, hair falling over her shoulders and pooling on her lap.

Shikamaru stood in front of her; she watched his feet pace back and forth, from her peripheral vision.

"You're not supposed to be here," she said, so softly, he wouldn't have heard her if he wasn't who he was.

And it was true.

None of them saw each other, much—if at all—anymore.

Not after Danzou put them under ROOT supervision.

"I don't really care," Shikamaru drawled, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his nin-pants. He paused from his pacing and, from the way his feet were facing her way, he turned towards her. "ROOT's going for another scouting. The entirety of Fire Country."

Ino looked up at him, then, gray-blue eyes wide. "_What_? We—Shikamaru, they could be there… Anywhere. Somewhere. I don't know—if they… god, god, god…"

"Ino, calm down," he placed a hand on her head, looking down at her with serious dark eyes. "Look, we fucked up—all of us. We fucked Sakura up and if that dead last ever finds out, he's going to kill us. But I admit it, as troublesome as it is; we fucked her up and left her alone when it was going all wrong for her. So now… Now we have to improvise. Sai and I are doing the best we can in keeping tabs on ROOT without looking suspicious. But you… You have to be strong, too, Ino."

She swallowed thickly.

"You're her best friend."

He disappeared out of her window, then, and Ino was left to get her resolve together.

.

.

.

There was a thunderstorm going on just a few miles from the border of Ame.

Sakura tried to curl herself into her tattered, dirtied cloak as best she could. She was shivering, lips trembling and pale. Sasuke was leading them, now, and she didn't think she liked not knowing where they were going. She kept trying to keep tabs on the directions, but she kept getting distracted; whether by her stupid emotions or the cold weather, she didn't really know.

They were inside a cave; dark silver-brown rocks and landscape filled with moss and bats and darkness. The shadows looked hungry, hunting as it spread around them like a predator hunting its prey. Sakura shivered and hid her face into her cloak, green eyes watching as Sasuke picked and prodded at the little tiny fire the roaring wind adamantly let him make.

Thunder rumbled and lightning flashed, leaving them both in a stupor for a few seconds before recovering their sight and losing it all over again when another flash appeared.

"Guh," Sakura groaned, curling into a tight ball. "We're going to have to huddle."

Silence answered her and she lifted her head up, lips trembling and air clouds forming in front of her face. Sasuke had his head leaning back against the hard surface of the cave's jagged wall, his cloak was around him and she could see his body shaking just as badly as hers. The fire was nothing but a few short flames, then, too weak to give them even an ounce of warmth.

"Sasuke," she mumbled, loosening up and beginning to crawl. "We have to huddle together and share body heat; we'll get sick or… or…"

She grew quiet just as soon as she was by his side and his shakes and her shakes meshed into one; they shivered in unison, and she could hear her teeth chattering and the uneven breaths he took from his parted lips. They remained stiff at each other's side, trembling and trying to fight off the freezing cold that overtook them like a cold fever. The tension around them was alive, even then.

But Sakura'd be damned—she would be damned.

She curled into him, hiding her face against his arm and spreading some of her smaller cloak around him. Sakura felt him stiffen for a brief moment before he, too, wrapped some of his cloak around her and leaned into her warmth.

Her eyes were clenched closed, face buried into his arm and thoughts of all that happened between them two days ago repeating itself like a dead, broken mantra. She bit at the material of his shirt, careful not to get any of his flesh, and tried to contain her screams of exasperation down her throat.

She fell asleep that way.

.

.

.

It wasn't until mid-afternoon when she realized what borders they were heading straight into.

The day was cloudy and gray, dark enough to assume it was evening instead of two in the afternoon. The dirt ground of the never-ending forest was still moist and muddy with the heavy downpour of the night before, the leaves of the trees still glistening with lingering raindrops.

Sakura paused on a thick branch ten feet off the ground, placing her hands against the mossy trunk. Her breaths were uneven, chest rising and falling erratically as she turned her frantic green eyes Sasuke's way. He'd stopped on the branch right next to hers just as soon as he'd caught her pause. He stood straight, arms hidden under his raggedy cloak, messy hair framing his thin, pale face and shadowing his eyes.

"We—we—" she shook her head, short auburn hair fanning her. "We're heading to Fire Country—what are you _thinking_! You're setting us up, Sasuke… You…You're… I can't… _You're taking me home?!_ You're taking me to my own annihilation! What—I—I can't believe you!"

Her anger ignited after a night's rest and Sakura was seeing red, again. Her head pulsed, like being struck with one of Tenten's weapons in the head repeatedly and without mercy. She was gasping for air, hands sweating and nails digging crescent-shaped wounds into her palms as she clenched them into fists.

"I expected everything from you, Sasuke, except—"

He was in front of her in a flash; a blink of an eye—he was gone—a shallow breath and he materialized right in front of her. Sasuke was an entire head taller than her; gone were the days when they'd been close to the same height and they both towered over Naruto. Now, she was the short one and now it was she that had to look up at him, eyes wide because of the shadow his taller frame casted upon hers.

When everything about the moment settled, she squared her shoulder and lifted her chin up with pride, letting her anger flash through her eyes and the thin line her lips set into.

"You're an asshole," she hissed. "You said—you stayed—you stayed and that was supposed to mean something. You're supposed to help me find—"

He placed a hand in front of her mouth, silencing her. Sakura furrowed her brow, senses peaking as she tried to figure out what exactly was going on; she began to inwardly freak out when Sasuke leaned closer to her, his eyes bleeding red as he searched for something neither of them could see. They stayed like that for a while, their chests touching as they breathed.

In a heartbeat, he'd wrapped an arm around her waist and they'd disappeared from where they stood and climbed higher up the trees, hidden within the leaves. He was still close to her and it was taking all Sakura had to let her anger continue to dominate her because she didn't think she could afford to let her squashed feelings for Sasuke resurface.

She couldn't afford the distraction.

He was looking downwards, eyes darkening back to their blank black.

"We aren't alone in the forest," he murmured. His lips were dry and chapped from last night's storm; the cold wind probably peeled and tortured the soft skin. "Hide any traces of your chakra."

Sakura did so.

Slowly, his hand fell away from her lips, dropping back to his side as he continued to be alert and search the forest for whoever was passing by. Shinobi from other villages, merchants—bounty hunters looking for them… Anyone.

"We aren't safe here," she whispered to him. "We have to leave…"

He raised a finger to his lips, still not looking at her.

"There is somewhere we need to go," he murmured. She watched his lips brush against his finger as it continued to hover not even an inch away from his lips. "And it's within Fire Country."

Sakura didn't understand and she had no clue as to where he was taking them. But fear began to drill holes onto her resolve; her eyes remained on Sasuke, watching his muscles tense like a cat ready to attack, like a snake ready to devour his prey. And it was just enough to give him an ounce of trust.

.

.

.

Sakura paused in the outskirts of a gray city.

She doubled over, paranoia making her want to disappear in fear that they'd been followed the whole way through. She looked up at this new, strange place from under her lashes and through her messy red-brown hair. Buildings weaved close to each other; like an intimate family. Windows were broken and walls were cracked and pieces of concrete littered the floor along with broken glass and broken furniture.

Sakura swallowed thickly as she followed Sasuke into the lonely town, green eyes wide as she looked from one side to the other. He led her into a building with a sign that said 'abandoned'; Sakura was sure to look around before fully entering, her paranoia getting the best of her.

Water dripped from the pipes above.

It was constant—the echoing of the _drip, drip, drip_—it fell in beat with her heart and her steps as she walked down a dim corridor. Pipes were everywhere; they were under ground, if she wasn't mistaken. "Where are we," she asked, voice soft because if she heard another echo she was sure she'd jump out of her skin. "This—this is a hideout."

Silence followed, for a second; Sakura was more than accustomed to Sasuke's silence.

"It is," he confirmed, after a minute. "It's one of Orochimaru's."

She looked up at him, at that, eyes wide and lips curling into a sneer.

"It was also used as a weapons storehouse by my clan," he continued, voice low and unperturbed by her behavior. "It's only a matter of time before your hokage sends out hunter-nins after us. We have to be ready."

"He's _not_ my hokage," Sakura sneered, anger and disgust seeping into her words. But he had a valid point—they needed to equip themselves; Sasuke had his ninjutsu and his doujutsu and his infamous speed, but Sakura only had genjutsu and taijutsu. And against hunter-nins—or ROOT—that wouldn't get her too far before she was caught.

Before Sasuke could respond—if he were planning to—another set of footsteps and voice interrupted and Sakura whirled around to face them, hands curling into fists.

"Well we thought we heard some commotion," one said, "What a surprise to see _you_ here again, Sasuke."

Sakura tried to relax; these… _Cats_ knew Sasuke… She cleared her throat, looking from the two small felines and then towards Sasuke who looked down at them with a ghost of a smirk on his lips.

"Denka, Hina," he nodded his head. "I assume you are both well."

"Indeed," one of the cats said, grinning. "What brings you back so soon, eh?" And then it turned towards Sakura, opening one of its slit eyes and giving her a once over.

"The usual," Sasuke drawled, crouching down and rolling two small bottles towards them. Sakura remembered them making a very quick pit-stop at a market before leaving Ame; everything was slowly making sense, but fuck, if she didn't still feel completely overwhelmed by the entire situation. "Weapons, medicine… Perhaps a few other things."

The bulkier of the two cats chuckled, "You know how to win us over, Sasuke; come along, then, let's go see the Elder Cat. And make sure your pretty friend doesn't get lost."

She and Sasuke walked in silence, after that, the silent hum of the two cats murmuring to each other the only other noise that wasn't the constant dropping of the water pipes, Sakura made sure she kept close to Sasuke's side; every hall looked the same and if she were to lose her focus for even a second… Sakura didn't even want to think about it.

Soon, they arrived into a very spacious room; it was crowded with different sized teapots and teacups, books and boxes and bottles. The walls were decorated with pipes and cat posters and cat clocks that moved their tails with every tic-tic-tic. At the very back of the room, there were two curtains, both a dark burgundy and pulled back to either side to reveal a comfortable-looking, neatly made bed and a just as comfortable rug right in front of it.

On the rug, sat an old woman, her eyes were downcast as she cleaned her pipe, fully ignoring the dozen of cats that curled and purred at her.

Sakura stared at her as she lightly twitched with every step she and Sasuke took within the room. She wore fake cat ears over her head, pulling back her gray hair. Once they stopped in front of them, Sasuke knelt down in respect and Sakura, completely wide-eyed, couldn't help but follow his lead.

"I have come to you in my time of need, Elder Cat," Sasuke murmured. Sakura stared at him from the corner of her eyes, watching as his eyes stared at the ground below them, his messy forelocks still shadowing his face.

"Sasuke," said the Elder Cat, "I am glad to see you in good health. But then that means…"

"Yes," Sasuke answered, quickly. "Yes… It does."

The Elder Cat went silent before asking them both to sit up. "I'm sorry…" Her eyes locked with Sasuke's for a brief moment before sparing Sakura a glance. "But, well. What do you need, kitten—Tamaki! Tamaki, get in here and find these two kitties some clothes, dear lord, you're both nothing but balls of filth!"

Sakura swore that everything after that was a blur.

.

.

.

When Sakura resurfaced from the distorting images, she was dressed in black nin-shorts with a matching top, her boots and a new cloak was being thrown over her shoulders by Tamaki. She stared at herself in the small mirror and it was as if she was at the creek all over again.

She couldn't recognize herself.

Dark shadows under her dull green eyes, pale skin, thin face and even thinner limbs, dark red-brown hair… Who was this girl?

Sakura swallowed and gave Tamaki a thankful, watery smile.

"Here."

She looked up, not realized that the girl had left the room and Sasuke had taken her place. Sakura turned away from the mirror, looking at what Sasuke handed to her; wraps and a pouch. As she took a hold of it, she realized it was heavy with the weight of kunais and shurikens. She murmured her thanks, quickly wrapping the wraps around her right thigh and strapping the pouch over them.

Sasuke was doing the same, right across from her; he wore a similar attire as she—dark nin-pants and a long sleeved shirt to go with it as well as his boots. He didn't have a cloak, yet, but something else took over Sakura's attention. She watched as he lifted the sleeves of his shirt up to his elbows, watched as he began to expertly wrap wraps from mid-forearm to the tip of his fingers. But what grabbed Sakura's attention were the summoning tattoos that glared at her for a brief moment.

"Summoning tattoos?" she asked, without realizing.

He looked up at her as he slid the sleeve of his left arm down and gave a low grunt. "Weapon storage."

"Oh, how convenient," she said, a small smile twitching her lips upwards.

The first smile in a long while, the realization startled her; it was gone a second later.

"Are you ready?" Sasuke eyed her for a second before turning around and leading them back to the Elder Cat's room. There, Tamaki handed Sasuke a cloak as well as what looked like to Sakura as a chokutō. He accepted it, giving her a curt nod as he continued to lead them both to where the elder sat.

There, Sasuke knelt and bowed once again and Sakura followed his moves.

"Thank you for your generosity, Elder Cat," Sasuke murmured, reaching towards her and handing her something Sakura couldn't see. "I am in your debt once again."

"So you are, kitten," she said, smoking out of her pipe. "Tamaki has the girl's medical pouch ready, as you requested. Whatever you're up to now, don't you dare die, Uchiha Sasuke."

He gave her one last bow before standing back to his full height and walking away.

Sakura looked up at the elder, swallowed as she caught her staring right back at her and then gave her a last curtsy. "Thank you for your kindness, Elder Cat."

She stood and made to walk away, thanking Tamaki as she handed her the medical pouch. She paused as the old woman said one last thing.

"Take care of that brat; he's stupid."

.

.

.

"Where to, now?"

They stood above a cliff, looking down at what look like a never ending gorge. Sakura looked up at the pink sky and took a deep breath, closing her eyes and feeling the air caress her. Fire Country was home, no matter what; the feel of just being in its atmosphere was like a gentle mother embracing her child.

She wondered if Sasuke felt it, too.

Angry and resentful as well as lost and alone—Sakura hadn't felt this peaceful in so long and, oh, how she wished it would last.

But once she opened her eyes, it was all gone and the harsh reality of what was going on settled in the pit of her stomach. She wore no hitai-ate and she stood side by side with Uchiha Sasuke; she was a rogue but she was a rogue with a mission. And an entire corrupted mass was soon to be out looking for her with the intentions to kill.

"We're going to find Naruto," she said, straightening her back. "And we're going to go back to Konoha. And we're taking it back."

She felt Sasuke's eyes on her, but it was just for a second.

In the next instance, they were sprinting towards the forest.

* * *

FINALLY A NEW CHAPTER. It's been forevahh and a half; now that I successfully transferred all seven chapters from wordpress onto here, I can finally make a REAL update and here it is. After this, there's one more chapter that's pre-written and after that, we are all at the mercy of my brain. So.

As it goes, thank you for the support; thank you to the six reviewers and I suppose I am also grateful for the barrage faves/alerts from silent lurkers.

Please review :3


	9. bad day at black rock

**9**

The forest was dark.

Sakura sat at the edge of the creek, fingers dipping into the cool water and causing ripples. She tilted her head to the side, closing her eyes and trying to remember little things that made her what she was today; it was all that could keep her sane, nowadays. Thoughts of past missions where Team Seven was still Team Seven and Naruto was always the one to catch the fishes and Sasuke was always the one to set the fire and she was always the one to look for the logs while Kakashi watched them from atop the trees, eye crinkled in delight at their teamwork.

She hummed, a smile twisting her lips at the side.

They were mere miles away from the border of Fire Country; she'd be lying if she didn't say she was ready to leave. Nothing awaited them there, other than certain death. And Sakura was not ready to die.

She sighed, deciding that was enough time on loitering around and shifted so she was crouching as she filled her canteen with water. The night's cool air fanned the back of her neck, shifting her dark red-brown hair to curl around her neck and fall over her eyes.

Everything was quiet.

Sakura looked up from her task, her eyes on the mossy rocks across from her. She listened to the buzz of the night, to the wind as it blew to and fro.

She turned around, canteen forgotten, and stared at the three hooded figures surrounding her, her fists curled tightly and her heart hammered an escape route against her ribcage.

.

.

.

If they stood like that for seconds, it really felt like hours to her.

She couldn't see their faces; didn't think they had faces to look at, under the hood and beyond the dark shadow. These were hunter-nin, and even worse, ROOT. They'd been found—_she'd _been found. But how, if they'd been careful about everything? Traveling nonstop for almost a day and a half and even now, fixing up a quick camp without any fire because the smoke would give them off…

Sakura clenched her jaw, eyes narrowing until they were just shards of green slits, feeling like her anger was the source of her strength, these days, and letting it all out to give her the strength to battle not one but three ROOT members. But it'd be okay, she assured herself; she'd done it before when she and Sasuke first escaped Konoha. Granted they were worse for wear, but they managed against them.

Only problem was that she was now alone; back then, even Sasuke being handicapped and blind had been a great deal of help. Now, Sasuke was in their camp, probably asleep and probably clueless to her predicament.

And that was fine, too, Sakura continued to assure herself.

She raised her chin up in defiance, letting the fire of her anger pump her chakra through her system.

An intake of breath later, and Sakura saw them disappear and reappear right in her face; she pursed her lips and rolled out of their way, standing up a nanosecond later and punching the ground with a chakra coated fist. The earth rumbled, the creek splashed water onto the dry land and trees shifted as their roots rose up from underground. Dust clouds shielded her and Sakura bent forwards, like a lioness about to attack her prey, and looked around, all five of her senses on overload as she tried to depict where they were going to jump out of next.

The first one to make a move towards her was easy to find, Sakura spun in place and slammed a kick to his stomach, sending him flying back where he came from. As she did this, she was unable to prepare to evade the next one that went for the attack at her left, slicing her arm open with a paper-cut-thin scratch that hurt more than an enormous jagged wound would.

Sakura grunted, looking up at him as she ran the tip of her glowing-green finger down the thin scratch, she bared her teeth at him, watching as his hood fell from his head and an ANBU mask appeared out of the darkness; she stared at the empty glower of the wolf as she sprinted towards him, arm pulled back and fist ready to cause damage.

She let out a short battle cry, at the last minute switching into grabbing the arms that aimed to attack her and swinging him away from her person. She ducked as a kick was aimed at her from one of the others and took a blow to the jaw as the other appeared right above his partner.

That's when the triple attack on her began; she blocked one blow and another came in its place and she hit one of her opponents, but the other was able to evade. It was like a dance, like a combination. Sakura was breathing through her mouth, ignoring the metallic tang of blood as she tasted it in her mouth and smelt it as it flowed down her nose. One of her eyes was beginning to swell and close up and she wanted to destroy them, she did—she _did_.

But a mere Chuunin—a _defected_ Chuunin—was nothing against three ANBU ROOT.

She gasped for air as she managed to kick one of them off and away from her, bringing her arms up to hover above her face, crossed like an x to prevent her enemies from hitting her any more than they already were. She heard cries—birds crying—a thousand birds crying all at once.

Blue tinges overtook the dark night, lighting everything up more than the moon ever could and she watched as Sasuke ricocheted down from wherever he came from, his right hand glowing with the thunder of his Chidori. She watched him slam into one of their three enemies, watched as the Chidori sliced into and through their enemy's chest, watched blood coat Sasuke's entire forearm as he pulled his arm out and let the body of the ROOT member drop to the ground in a hollow thud.

He turned his head, towards the other two enemies that were left, as they began to run his way. Sakura saw the wheels of his Sharingan spinning, his lips contorted into a furious frown. He turned to face his opponent, fully, just standing and staring as he made his way towards him. Sasuke took a step forwards, and another, and another and another—slow and soft, tauntingly. As he walked, Sakura swore she saw purple chakra begin to envelope him like a cocoon, swore she saw his facial expression grow manic.

And this—

Oh god this…

This—she'd seen something like this before; she'd witnessed Sasuke lose control of himself; lose his bearings; want nothing but bloodshed at the price of his sanity. He looked crazed and angry and Sakura—Sakura had seen this look. With her sole good eye wide with horror, she watched not only as a skeletal figure began to curl around Sasuke almost protectively, but as the other ROOT member threw caution for his life aside and began to sprint towards him.

Sakura stood from the ground, her hands soiling with her own blood as she used the ground as her leverage. She sprinted as fast as she could, hands curling into fists and her eye closing as she body slammed against her enemy, sending them both flying towards the creek and leaving Sasuke to whatever he was up to. Sakura spat water out of her mouth and gave no other thought as she began to ruthlessly punch him, ignoring the wounds she already had and ignoring the ones she was acquiring as he fought back against her with tooth and nail.

The mask ROOT wore began to crack and break under her fist; she watched as shards fell onto the creek, onto his neck, watched as others piercing his skin until it was fully inside and all that was left was blood gushing out.

She heard agonized screaming from behind her and she was quick to jump away from her enemy and face Sasuke.

"No, Sasuke, _stop_," she screamed, gasping for air as she began to run towards him. The other ROOT was dead, crushed in the arms of the skeletal creature that Sasuke was producing. "Sasuke! _Sasuke_! _SASUKE_!"

He paused for a second, turning to look at her from over his shoulder; she didn't know what he saw, in her, in her face, about her. Didn't know what about her standing mere inches away from the purple chakra, staring at him with a single wide eye caused him to stop, completely, and allow the chakra and the skeletal being to disappear until it was just him.

She gasped for air and watched as he tried to come down from whatever high he was in.

"We have to go," she whispered, "The other one is still alive—he won't stop—he won't—reinforcement. Just—let's go!"

.

.

.

They didn't have time to grab everything from their little camp, but Sakura was quick to grab the medical pouch as well as her weapon pouch without stopping. Sasuke was leading them both through the maze of trees and darkness, never stopping, and keeping a cautious ear glued to whatever sound came from around them.

Sakura gulped for air, flinching every time drops of sweat would slide down and irritate her wounds.

They both ran for what seemed like a life time; her chest burned and her head pounded. She could hear her heartbeat resonating in her ears and she swore that her vision blurred and doubled before she blinked it all away.

"Are—are we being followed?" She didn't know who she asked and she didn't think she had been expecting a reply, but even so, she flashed a glance over her shoulder and saw nothing but the taunting darkness waving at her.

.

.

.

"What was that?"

They were inside an inn, in a nameless little village that was all civilian and no shinobi in sight. They arrived mere minutes ago and Sakura was still trying to regain her breath and get her body to stop shaking from exhaustion. But she—she had to know. What was that—_who_ was that? Was that really the extent of Sasuke's power, now?

How?

Why?

_How_?

He didn't turn to her, let alone said anything. Sasuke disposed of his shirt, setting it aside and sitting down at the edge of one of the two beds. He placed his hands at the beginning of his hairline, facing downwards. He let out a sigh. His right arm was still coated with crusty dried blood, and Sakura watched as he ran that hand down his hair, pulling it all back and sprinkling it with shards of blood before his rebellious forelocks fell back to hover over his face, letting the blood fall onto the air, like dust.

"Sasuke—I know you're listening to me. What _was_ that?"

"What was _what_?" He sneered, sparing her a glance through his messy hair before continuing to look down at the concrete floor of the inn.

"That—that _thing_! What was that? Just—what—"

He sighed and fully climbed onto the bed, arms crossed behind his head as he stared at the ceiling. "It's nothing."

"That is complete bullshit," Sakura growled, punching the wall and ignoring how the entire building rumbled. She glared at him and his pensive expression, glared at the way he didn't even flinch at having the room tremble, glared at him because even after all these years… They were still in the same spot. Just older.

But still—he was still at arm's reach, yet still so unable to touch him.

Sakura slumped her shoulders, sighing out all the fight she had within her. Her injuries throbbed and her bruised eye was numb; she'd forgotten she was only seeing with one eye. Slowly, she lifted her hands and began to undo the wrap bindings from around her hands and forearms.

"If we're going to do this," she said, softly, stiffly, "we're going to have to trust each other enough to tell our secrets; so that one of us isn't scared out of our wits of being killed in the rampage."

Silence, then, and Sakura began to slowly heal her wounds, leaving her eye for last. She wasn't sure how long they lasted, in that silence, but given how her company was Sasuke, chances were that hours passed them by. The sky was clearing up, outside, indigo blue now turning orange and pink as the sun decided it was time to wake up. Sakura stared at a pinkish-orange hue, chewing on her lower lip.

"I don't know," Sasuke finally said. "What that was—Susanoo. It was Susanoo. I just don't… Know when I acquired the ability to summon it."

She swallowed, not knowing how to respond to that; not knowing how to respond to Sasuke actually trusting her enough to tell her what that… thing… was, yet not knowing how he had developed a jutsu like that. Was it even a jutsu?

"It's… from your clan?"

"Yes."

Which brought the elephant in the room.

When she'd first heard from Sasuke, again, after Naruto had been taken from her, the news was that he was part of Akatsuki. His older brother, the older brother that ruined his life and the same older brother Sasuke hated with such intensity was part of that organization. The same organization that destroyed Konoha and the same organization that caused her Shishou to be nothing but a body lying on a bed. And the same organization that wanted Naruto dead.

For that to have come true… For Sasuke to be a part of them, to wear that cloak that haunted Sakura's dreams…

"Sasuke…"

"Don't." He turned towards her, hair falling over his eyes. "Just don't—I don't want to talk about it."

"At some point you'll have to!"

"Not _now_," he growled.

Sakura shook her head, a sneer curling her lips. "Sasuke this is _crucial_! I need—"

"You need _nothing_," Sasuke said, voice a low growl. "Quit it—just quit it."

She looked away, chest heaving as she tried to control her anger. "At least… At least answer me this; why didn't you come home, after?"

Another round of silence overtook them, and Sakura was left with nothing else to do but to shrug her boots off and curl onto the other bed, closing her eyes and relishing on how they burned from the countless of hours of being awake without so much as a little snooze atop of trees.

"Konoha sickens me," he finally said, voice soft yet heavy with hate.

.

.

.

When Sakura woke up, the sun was already setting. She faced the window, head still on the pillow, as she began to stretch like a cat. Her brow furrowed as she found herself alone in the room. She sat up, quickly, feeling a head rush settle in at her speed; paranoia over took her, her chest rising and falling unevenly as she breathed too quickly.

She paused when she heard the shower shut off.

And a pang of guilt began to flow through her system as she realized she was too quick to blame Sasuke for deserting her. But… But was it really her fault when he was so good at it? Was it, when he'd done it more than once, now? Sakura sighed, scooting to the edge of the bed and walking to the scratched mirror.

Her face looked better; at least her eye wasn't swollen, anymore. And all that was left of their ambush, last night, were her scars and her questions about all that Sasuke had gone through in his absence.

The door to the bathroom opened and Sakura stepped away from the mirror and watched as Sasuke walked out of the bathroom, towel over his head as he ruffled his hair to get rid of the excess water. He donned nothing but his nin-pants, riding low on his hips.

Sakura swallowed and squashed anything she wanted to feel because feeling that was a burden.

"Good, you're awake," he murmured, dropping the stiff-looking towel to the side. "We should leave after we find something to eat."

She nodded her head, closing her eyes and heading to the bathroom. A part of her… the other side of her, it wanted to welcome her feelings for Sasuke; because that was the side of her that was constant. The side that would never change because her feelings would never change. That was the side of her that reminded her of what she was fighting for; for her friends.

But at the same time…

She bit her lip and sighed, once alone in the bathroom.

At the same time, nothing was the same and things needed to be fixed before she could ever… Really acknowledge what she felt.

.

.

.

They sat in a small stand, eating onigiri and dumplings because it was all they could afford if they wanted the money Elder Cat had given them to last. Silence was their third member, sitting in between them even if there was only a mere three inches in between them and their elbows brushed every other two seconds.

A ghost of a smile assaulted Sakura's lips as she remembered that Sasuke loved onigiri; more so, tomato stuffed ones.

Silently, she made a small order of tomato stuffed onigiri.

A peace treaty.

A bridge.

A _please please I need you as much as you need me let's set our pride aside and be a team please_.

Sasuke paused as the stand owner set a small plate of three tomato stuffed onigiri in front of him. He stared down at them for a brief moment, his hand hovering just a bit above the stand. If he acknowledged her, gave her a glance, it was from the corner of his eye, where his forelocks shielded him and she couldn't see.

But she did manage to see the haughty tilt of his lips.

It was enough.

They continued to eat.

"Sasuke," Sakura said, swallowing and closing her eyes. It took all her strength to admit not only to herself, but to the entire world, aloud, that, "Konoha sickens me too."

* * *

This chapter is dedicated to Chloe because I love her.

Also, KUDOS TO THE ANON THAT FIGURED OUT I'M NAMING THE CHAPTERS WITH SUPERNATURAL EPISODE TITLES. LEGIT IT WAS ABOUT TIME, MAN.

Also, also, am now concentrating on Sasuke and Sakura's relationship because they need to be bros before they can kissy kissy. AND THIS IS THE LAST CHAPTER I'VE WRITTEN AND I AM CURRENTLY IN AN UGLY DRY SPELL SO I'M SORRY OKAY I AM TRYING BECAUSE I WANT TO WRITE BUT I CAN'T.

Anyway, review please c:


	10. caged heat

**10**

"We're stopping."

She whipped her head to the side; eyes squinted to protect them from her whipping hair. Sasuke had turned to face her, placing a hand on the thick trunk of the tree before jumping towards the next one, giving his palm a light scrape. There was no leader between the two; they both barked orders to each other and they always complied, regardless of any other feeling.

They'd made a pit stop at a small village not too far from the last one and traveling seemed to be going slow. Sakura was a medic-nin above everything and though she realized Sasuke's exhaustion from the moment after the fight with ROOT at the clearing, she let him do as he pleased.

Sasuke was prideful and Sakura was beginning to realize what it felt like to have your pride wounded.

But this was almost ridiculous.

His skin was clammy and his breathing was coming out through his parted lips. He was beyond exhausted and the fact that he didn't allow himself to properly rest was weighing him down.

"What?" He demanded just as soon as they dropped down to the ground.

He was in a crouch and his messy forelocks stuck to his sweaty forehead. Sakura watched as his chest rose and fell almost erratically.

"You're _tired_. Why haven't you said anything—this could be a hazard for our traveling. What's wrong, are you getting sick?" She took a couple of steps towards him, hand poised to feel on his forehead.

Sasuke leaned away from her touch, his brow furrowed and his pale lips set in a deep frown. "I'm _fine_."

She shook her head. "I don't think so. You've been exhausted since that thing—Susanoo—disappeared. Your movements have been slow and sluggish for _your_ standards."

Sakura watched him glare and her own eyes narrowed almost challengingly. "I'm a medic-nin, Sasuke. You can't hide from my eyes."

For a moment, it was quiet. The wildlife continued on over their argument, like background music; the chirps of the birds and the rustle of the bushes as rabbits, squirrels and the like moved from one shrub to the other. With her keen hearing, she could even hear the buzz of the bugs hiding wherever chances of survival were highest.

The sky was blue behind the leaves way above them; Sakura knew it'd only get brighter the more they traveled. Suna was their next destination and she had plans of staying there for as long as was possible. Despite how lost Konoha was with its new Hokage, Suna was still an ally.

_Gaara_ was still an ally and though, because of politics, he had to reason with Danzou, he was still _her_ friend.

_Naruto's_ friend.

He'd be on their side before Danzou, she knew it.

He'd keep them safe.

"Sasuke," she said, shifting her weight from one leg to the other and placing her hand at her hip.

He sighed, dropping down and leaning against the trunk of a tree. "I feel pain in every cell of my body."

.

.

.

Sakura fixed up camp after demanding Sasuke lay and rest.

She didn't think she had anything that could help him—her chakra healed wounds and restored damaged tissues and cells. But his cells and tissues were _there_, they just ached in a manner that Sakura didn't think she could imagine. He didn't need her chakra—he needed rest and nutrition.

He was sleeping now—or dozing off. Or, knowing Sasuke, neither. His inability to relax was what defined him—it was almost saddening to think about. Even now, from where she sat, she could see his body tense, his eyes moving under his lids, his hands clenching and unclenching—gripping and letting go of the blades of grass.

Sakura sighed, rolling her shoulders and closing her eyes.

"I don't know much about the Uchiha clan's doujutsus," she began, slowly. "Actually, I don't know anything other than the basic and the obvious. But I'm guessing Susanoo leaves a big impact after being used, yeah? One that renders the wielder to feel inexplicable pain?"

Silence answered her, but Sakura thought nothing of it.

Sasuke was as quiet as the dead were. He responded with his movements and with his facial features, Sakura knew that. He was a man of little to no words and only used them when necessary. So she studied him and his tense limbs and his scowl. She could hear a little girl in the back of her mind screaming—_why don't you say anything to me_—and she clenched her jaw, pushing it back.

She wasn't at that stage anymore.

They were different.

The circumstances were different.

"Susanoo consumes a large amount of chakra," he finally muttered.

Sakura's internal struggles halted and she stared at him, her brow furrowed. That made… Well, yes, that made a lot of sense, Sakura decided. She didn't know much about Sasuke's doujutsu other than the obvious, but for something as massive as that to manifest around him, protectively? That was bound to kill his reserves—and Sakura didn't even think that was the entirety of the materialization…

It had started off with just that purple chakra and after she'd dealt with the last of the two ROOT and she'd turn to him, watched him kill that member ruthlessly, she'd seen what she could only believe were _ribs_. And they encircled him possessively as ribs were known to do; caging and protective.

Slowly, she turned to look at him from under her lashes, studying him as he finally succumbed and fell into a light slumber. The even rise and fall of his chest, his messy forelocks shadowing his face, his lips in a neutral frown, his hands clenched at his sides… Sasuke was like a ticking bomb filled with explosions of power that she didn't think even _he_ knew about.

Where exactly did he gain all of it…?

.

.

.

He woke up when the sun was beginning to set, when the sky was turning indigo and pink and orange outlined the horizon.

By then, Sakura was ready. Everything was packed and she was crouched in front of him just as his eyes snapped open and he stared up at the leaves from the trees. He sat up a second later, hair tangling with his lashes and cloak rustling against the grass.

"Are you feeling better?" she asked, standing up to her full height just as he did.

Sasuke stared at her for a moment before giving a brief nod. Sakura pressed her lips together as she allowed him to compose himself and lead them both up into the trees.

Suddenly, images of Sasuke overtook her mind's eye. Images of him just as she and her brief team found him, his full intent to fight her and take her down without a second thought. And the last look he gave her before his eyes were covered for months—the look of outmost betrayal, anger, shock and disbelief. Every drop of rage and madness lost.

God, it haunted her even now. She didn't think Danzou could ever hurt her any more than he already had.

Taking Naruto and Kakashi away from her and framing her to make it seem she'd betray Sasuke... Her hands clenched, the gauze wrapped around them straining and beginning to cut circulation.

"Sakura."

She blinked looking up at him.

Sasuke looked at her with the same blank dark eyes she was used to—the look he wore when they were twelve traced on a thinner, older face.

"Let's go," he said, turning back around and jumping across the treetops.

Sakura followed.

.

.

.

Suna was a two day travel from Konoha.

They weren't in Fire Country anymore, but given where they'd been, traveling was probably cut off to an entire day. So far, they've been traveling for the entire night; watchful eyes from the night life in the forest watched them pass and the music of the grasshoppers and every other bug that chose to sing with them was loud and echoing in their eardrums.

The air was already growing dry the farther they traveled and the closer they got to their destination. Sakura's body shone with a thin layer of sweat and she felt like her cloak was trying to choke her with the extra heat it was giving her. Little ways in front of her, Sasuke seemed unfazed.

Sakura licked her dry lips and swung herself to the next thick branch, dropping onto it with a thick thud. "Suna!"

She watched Sasuke turned to look at her from over his shoulder, hair whipping as he zoomed in the air.

"We're heading to Suna," she called after him. "You realize that, right?"

He gave her a nod—or what Sakura deciphered as a nod.

She pursed her lips, remembering that Sasuke wasn't the best of friends with Sabaku no Gaara. But nonetheless… That wasn't going to scathe their aid; Gaara wouldn't do that. He wasn't the same vicious monster he had been when they were younger; he was mature, for his age, as were all of them. He'd know how to handle this.

And Sasuke… Sasuke had years of practice of swallowing his pride.

.

.

.

They arrived drenched in sweat and their eyes stinging from lack of sleep.

From the sun's position, Sakura guessed it was a little passed ten o'clock in the morning. Suna's gates stood over them, stretching up to the sky in all its jagged glory. The air was dry and the sun was scorching—Suna was a desert, sand surrounded it like an old friend, grains floating in the air whenever the rare breeze blew by.

Sakura didn't see a single tree in sight and already her blood yearned for them.

She sighed, looking over at Sasuke who stood next to her, hidden under his hood and staring at the village with a look of disdain.

Sighing, again, Sakura led them both towards the gates, slipping through the entrance and walking the length to the other side with cautious steps. Everything echoed in there and Sakura wondered if her thoughts did too—did Sasuke hear them? Her anger and her worry and just how caged she felt, hiding in the background and running away?

Sasuke wasn't far behind her, following her steps like a shadow. They were both silent, preparing themselves for any kind of surprise that would meet them.

"Are you sure this is alright?" She heard Sasuke ask her under his breath.

That was how close they were to each other, enough to hear even the slowest, lowest of breaths. Sakura ignored the shiver that traveled down her spine and the gooseflesh that prickled her skin.

"Positive," she replied, turning her head, slightly. "If we get stopped and they see me, they'll inform Gaara—he… He won't turn us in to Danzou."

He didn't reply and the light from the other side shone over them as they finally entered the village. Nothing much had changed from the last time Sakura was there; the buildings were still smooth and sandy-brown, looking like dunes instead of buildings. Sakura turned her green eyes to the group of Sand-nin that occupied the small office by the gate's door, watching them watch her and Sasuke and deliberate if to stop them or not.

They decided on the former.

Sakura paused as two of the group approached them, Sasuke pausing next to her. She made sure to make the plan clear—she was going to do the talking.

"State your business," one of the two Sand-nins said, voice demanding and leaving little to no room for argument.

But Sakura wasn't going to have any of it. As Konoha's ally, they were probably already aware of the situation—already aware that Sakura had 'captured' her former teammate, Uchiha Sasuke, for her new Hokage, already aware that he had been in solitary imprisonment in a cave with his arms chained up and his eyes covered up. They were aware he had been in that state for months, aware that her group had isolated her, had been disgusted by her, had left her alone. They were aware that she broke Sasuke out and they escaped Konoha with their tails caught in between their legs.

And they were aware of the bounty on their heads.

But Sakura didn't care.

She dropped her hood and snatched the standard green-vest of the shinobi closest to her and dragged him closer. Her eyes locked with his as they grew wide with his realization, "Take us to your Kazekage. Now."

* * *

LOOK IT DIDN'T TAKE AS LONG AS WE ALL THOUGHT.

We have NaNo to thank for that. Tho', I am kind of cheating with it this year. Whatever. Anyway, this was actually supposed to be a Sasuke chapter but he's so reluctant to talk. It's really annoying =_=

Thanks for the reviews, guys, they were all motivational for me while in my dry spell.

Please be bold bitches and review c:


	11. time is on my side

**11**

Her chest rose and fell as she pressed herself against the cool surface of the wall, completely hidden within the shadows. She couldn't help it—this was suicide. This, if caught, was going to land them in prison just like Sasuke had been; with the way Konoha was going, Danzou had enough rocky surfaces to drill holes into to make as makeshift cells. Individually, chakra-draining, will-breaking, inhumane.

"How long do you think those bunshins will last?" Her eyes were wide, pupils dilated as she tried to adjust her sight to the darkness.

Next to her, he grunted, his arm brushing hers as he leaned forwards and looked out to the mouth of the alley they were hiding in. "Long enough."

She bit at her lip. It wasn't that she was scared—they needed to start making a move, she understood that. Ino was not weak and she was not a burden; she was strong, prideful, easily angered, bratty, vindictive, manipulative and a friend. And she was going to find Sakura and bring her back from within the gates of Konoha.

That was not what she was worried about.

If they did as they were aiming to do, they would _still_ inevitably be exposed. Being inside the mind of the enemy _still_ allowed them to know that their minds were being invaded. And what if he escaped? What if he saw _her_ and reported back to Danzou; it'd set her to an instant death! And what good would she be then?

"Quit worrying, Ino," he said, sparing her a glance with half lidded eyes. "He won't escape. I won't let him."

Ino nodded, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath; composing herself because as the sun began to set, ROOT patrol would double and—and—

"There," he hissed and he curled his fingers in front of his face in the hand signs he knew by heart, muttering something, eyes closed and not bothering to watch as his shadow extended, grabbing onto a ROOT, locking him in place. His eyes turned to Ino. "Be ready."

He walked forwards, causing the ROOT member to do so as well, until he was away from the public eye yet not too far into the shadows to lose his grip on him. Ino took a deep breath, connecting her forefingers and thumbs together, glaring at the man with all the hatred she could muster. A second later and she felt as light as a feather as she traveled without her body, entering the mind of their enemy.

She didn't take any time to adjust, settling to searching—raking through this man's memories and trying to figure out everything he knew; there were memories of the night Sakura and Sasuke escaped and the sight of how much of a beast her best friend had to turn herself into to survive nearly made her falter. But she gritted her teeth and searched and searched until she stumbled upon a recent one.

One of ROOT reporting to Danzou about a siting of Sasuke and Sakura near the borders of Fire Country.

And another of a report on an assassination failure with all three Hunter ROOT-nins dead.

Ino swallowed. That was the most recent.

That's all she needed.

She closed her eyes and returned to her body with a guttural gasp, lifting herself up from Shikamaru's arms as she stared at the man before her as he tried to regain his bearings.

"Kill him," she hissed through her clenched teeth, watching with satisfied gray-blue eyes as Shikamaru began to perform his Shadow Neck Binding. But just for good measure, Ino took out a kunai from her pouch, walking towards the man and smiling as she heard him begin to gasp for air underneath his mask; she twirled her weapon in her grasp, pulling her hand back and thrusting the pointed edge through the man's heart. She pulled him into the alley as his gurgles came to a stop.

"Well?" Shikamaru asked as he took the dead man from her grasp.

Ino stared at the blood in her hands. "They are safe."

* * *

Suna was a desert oasis—a beautiful one at that.

Buildings of all sizes with the same shape of sand igloos stacked on top of each other and hardened with water to keep its shape. The people walked the streets with smiles on their faces and shadows under their eyes, skin like golden silk and hair as sandy as the environment that surrounded them.

Sakura slowly slid her hood back onto her head as she followed the Suna-nin, lowering her eyes to the ground and watching how her boots would kick up sand with each step she took. Next to her, Sasuke walked with his head held high, eyes shadowed by his forelocks and the hood of his cloak. She wouldn't expect any less from him—Suna was like a sore on his body, aching and annoying.

Some things about Sasuke would never really change.

As they reached the Kazekage's tower, the Suna-nin spared them a glance from over his shoulders his eyes growing a bit wide with distress, jaw clenched and Adam's apple bobbling as he swallowed with force. Sakura narrowed her eyes, challenging him to say anything. But he didn't; he turned back to the front and led them up the flights of stairs, down a long hall and in front of elegant doors.

He knocked once, clearing his throat.

"Kazekage-sama—Kazekage-sama, some—something has occurred…"

There was silence but Sakura swore she could hear Gaara's low drawl; raspy and gritty and heavy with a lifetime of neglect and acceptance and hope. Sakura shoved the Suna-nin forwards, demanding he open the door; she didn't mean to come off as demanding and rude and like such a rogue, but the man was angering her and playing with her patience.

She was tired.

She was weary.

She felt like she grew so much in a span of—of—

She didn't even remember anymore.

She just wanted to feel secure, sleep without having to keep an eye open and her brain functioning.

He opened the doors and warily stepped inside and Sakura soon followed after sparing the silent Sasuke a glance. Their eyes locked for a split second and she was sure he gave her a curt nod—she was sure of it. But she didn't dwell into it; she turned around and walked inside, back straightening and shoulders squaring.

"What is this," she heard Kankuro ask, his tone laced with anger and she couldn't help but understand him.

Two cloaked figures entering the Kazekage's office; it looked like an assassination attempt even to the blindest person alive.

"Ah, Gaara-sama—"

"Gaara."

She lowered her hood and stared at her old friend in the eye.

* * *

Gaara slowly stood up from his chair, his hands on the surface of his desk, scrolls completely forgotten. His eyes were half-lidded yet filled with something like shock and—almost—relief. He slowly turned his head to the right, ignoring his shaggy red hair as it fell over his eyes as he watched Sasuke slowly begin to appear as his hood fell off his head.

They were alive.

They were here.

God, that was—that was relieving.

Upon hearing the escaped Konoha and in the manner they'd done it, Gaara was sure Naruto—wherever he may be—would be devastated if they had died. But they were alive, wild-eyed and almost manic, yet alive.

"Sakura," he murmured, lips barely moving. "Uchiha Sasuke."

"Gaara," Sakura said, walking forwards, almost shaking out of her skin.

Haruno Sakura was a lot of things. Gaara remembered her being such a weak girl, driven by her emotions yet acting upon them in the wrong way; weak, yet so strong—strong enough to put her life on the line for her teammates on more than one occasions. He remembered her growing up, remembered her eyes growing hard and the shadows under her eyes growing a bit darker as her missions grew more dangerous, hands tainted in so much blood, she decided to wear gloves.

Gaara also remembered hearing how she saved his brother's life.

And he also remembered hearing how she fought against Akasuna no Sasori at the side of Chiyo-sama; allowed herself to become a puppet and smashed anything upon her range, remembered hearing the tales of how she allowed herself to be mortally wounded yet she saved herself and saved Chiyo and eliminated a man with the power to be a part of Akatsuki.

Haruno Sakura was a lot of things, but a rogue, she was not.

This stage she was in was eating at her life; eating her inside out and leaving her hollow.

"You look tired," he muttered, sitting back down in his seat. "Both of you do."

Sakura nodded and Gaara finally took notice of the color of her hair—of course, she had a bounty over her head. She had to change the color of her hair if she wished to survive long enough; pink hair wasn't a common hair color anywhere other than Konoha, after all. And even so, there was only one person that was well known to carry such a trait.

"Please… Please tell me you know something about Naruto," she said, eyes watering and looking so hopeful. "I—I don't know… I don't know what Danzou has done with him or Kakashi-sensei—"

Gaara shook his head, "I am as worried and without a lead as you are."

Her shoulders slumped and a long, low sigh escaped past her lips.

"Look," Gaara said, steeping his fingers together to support his chin. "Rest. And we will talk—"

"We don't have much time," Sakura said, voice cracking.

Gaara eyed them both, his clinical eyes observing how thin they both looked; skin and bones is what they were. He closed his eyes and took a shallow exhale. "I will keep you safe for as long as I can. Danzou has not contacted me in days; I have no information he needs."

They eyed him with the eyes of wolves, sizing him up, and rolling his offer around in their heads. Slowly Sakura nodded, stepping back and inching closer to Sasuke.

Gaara swallowed as he said, "Temari, take them somewhere. Kankuro, make sure it goes around to our shinobi that Haruno Sakura and Uchiha Sasuke are _not_ here."

His siblings grunted in affirmation and Gaara closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose just as soon as he found himself alone in his office.

* * *

The place Sabaku's sister brought them to was small—one bedroom, a kitchen and a small living room blending into one. Sasuke eyed the place with minor attention; he had never been one for details or materialism. At least there was a roof that could be as permanent as permanent could be for someone like him. For someone like Sakura.

He shoved his hands into the pockets of his nin-pants, slowly looking around the place before sitting down at the edge of the small, stiff couch.

If he heard right, the Sabaku girl had said she kept this place for herself, when her brothers became too much. In a way, it would explain why it was so plain; she looked to be the type that came and went and never stayed anywhere long enough to care about how it looked.

Sasuke sighed, leaning back and closing his eyes.

He really just wanted some sleep.

The air in this village choked him from how dry it was.

He stood from the couch, making his way towards the room to at least get some sleep on it before Sakura kept it to herself for the night. But he paused three steps away from the half-closed doors, dark eyes narrowing as he heard sobbing. His hands inside his pockets clenched, instinctively.

Sakura was crying.

He could hear Temari hushing her in a way only an older woman, an older sister, an older shinobi could; almost like a mother.

And it was then that Sasuke realized that Sakura had changed in ways that he could have never realized if not for stepping into this moment. All those tears… Everything… She kept that all bottled up until now…

Sasuke pressed his lips into a thin line and turned away, dismissing her soft sobs for thoughts about sleep on the couch. It wasn't his problem, anyway.

* * *

When Sakura woke up from a deep sleep filled with black voids, Temari was gone.

She rubbed at her face, scratching off the dried salt-tracks her tears had left on her cheeks. She sat up from the bed, walking out of the room and towards the kitchen and living room hybrid. Sasuke sat on the couch, unmoving; he almost looked as if to be asleep had his breathing not been that of a perfectly awake person instead of even and hushed like someone who was in a light slumber. She walked around the other side of the couch, sitting down and looking at the plate of onigiri sitting on the small table in front of him

His eyes were closed but Sakura knew he wasn't asleep and she tried to fight off the smile creeping onto her lips but it proved to be difficult. She hid behind her auburn forelocks, bringing her knees to her chest.

"You made that?"

He grunted.

"And you waited for me?"

He grunted again.

There was a sour look on his face but Sakura… Sakura didn't mind it, like she didn't mind the fast pace of her heart because this was… this was her forever love—this was him. She pushed the feelings aside because of their circumstances but he still was and she knew he always would be her forever love. And she just…

She was only human.

She was in love and she was only human.

She was angry and she was devastated and lost and broken and a rogue.

But she was still only human.

Sakura leaned forwards and grabbed the plate, offering it to him. He peeled an eye open, dark irises staring at her from the corner, head tilted to the side. He was still frowning, lips almost curling into a sneer. But she didn't mind it.

Sasuke grabbed at one of the onigiri and as she placed the plate in the space between them, one of her own snack in her hand, they ate in mutual silence.

* * *

I don't feel comfortable with this chapter; dunno, maybe it's because I just kind of wrote it after a huge Theorem Block. But, I don't really like it. I do like that, in the first scene, it shows how dark and awful things are getting in Konoha. But I don't like how the perspective shifts a lot.

Maybe it's because I'm used to it being solidly Sakura's. Or Sasuke's. But Gaara wanted to talk and I was like "hey man, just don't hurt me". Also, I think he has a bit of a crush on Sakura, idk, he doesn't want to tell me but that's just the vibe I got.

Also whatever transpired between Sasuke and Sakura doesn't mean they gon' fuq any time soon, if at all. 'kay?

AND LASTLY, OMG I'M SORRY THIS SUCKS PLEASE DON'T HURT ME TRUST ME I KNOW IT SUCKS YOU DON'T HAVE TO REMIND ME.

Please review c:

PS. This one goes out to the families that lost their beautiful children in the Newton Tragedy. Parents should not have to bury their children.


	12. folsom prison blues

**12**

With life on the run, sleep escaped her system for good.

Sleeping with an eye open was not a good way to live and slowly, slowly that turned into insomnia altogether in which her eyes were closed but her brain was functioning and her ears could pick up even a cricket's hop. The last time she slept was when the wave of exhaustion overtook her upon arriving to Suna, when she fell asleep with her head on Temari's lap.

It was two in the morning on the third night in the desert village. It was scorching hot and the night sky was clear, from outside the small window across from her; Sakura was fully awake, like an owl hiding on the branches of the trees. She stared at the ceiling, sighing and shifting position in her attempts to find a way to fall asleep. But the most she'd done was entangle herself in the sheets and cause herself to sweat more than what the weather alone was causing her to.

Sakura sighed and sat up, running a hand through her tangled auburn hair before allowing herself to fall back with a light thud.

Suna was great. A little too warm for what she was actually used to, but it was great. They didn't go out much, during the daylight but given the rough few weeks they'd been going through, being able to just stay in one place without fear of being attacked from any and all directions was like a breath of fresh air.

Sasuke had sharpened all their weapons in the span of a day and a half; they were now sharp enough to cut through their pouch.

But while calming, the few days they have spent in the small apartment have not been able to calm their nerves and allow them to lower their guards. Moving in silence caused one or the other to flinch and grab a weapon or clench and raise fists up just to look away in some form of embarrassment upon reality catching up to them.

Silence was the third member of their team and Sakura was surprisingly alright with that. She wasn't twelve and naïve, anymore; she was sixteen going on seventeen and silence was like an old friend of hers. But, god, if she didn't want to scream her throat raw, sometimes. Just to remind herself she was still alive.

Kind of like she did right then, lying in bed with no ounce of sleep weighing her eyelids down over her too-sharp eyes. She felt like she could run around the entire village three times and still be unable to fall asleep. She was antsy and annoyed—the room was closing in on her, she thought. It made her shift and shift until she rolled to the edge of the bed, threw her legs over so the cool linoleum of the floor jolted her feet and sent a shiver through her to-hot limbs.

Sakura groaned, running a hand through her hair.

Beads of sweat ran down her temple and tried to make it to her cheeks before she ran the back of her hands against them, stopping them in their tracks. She stood up from the bed, moving around the room and trying to find something to do. But she swore she felt as if she couldn't breathe, in there—as if she was trapped in a jail cell, stripped of any freedom.

She ran out of the room, then, gasping and trying hard to not make a single sound. The apartment felt too small and crowded to her, right then. She needed to get out of there, get some of the dry air from outside into her system.

She took quick steps into the living room, her eyes falling on Sasuke's unmoving form on the couch. Her movements slowed, taking cautious steps towards the door. With a hand on the cool knob, she turned to look at Sasuke; he was on his stomach, hands wrapped around his pillow. If anything, he probably knew she was there. If anything, he said nothing because he was measuring her intentions.

He didn't move—didn't even open his eyes. She took this as him giving her space.

Sakura opened the door, slipped outside and took a deep breath.

.

.

.

Suna was dead and quiet at this hour of the night. Anyone sane was asleep, in their fifth dream, with a fan on and cooling their bodies enough to allow them to wrap cool sheets around their bodies and sleep like any other normal human around the country. But Sakura found herself walking down the streets, barefoot and wearing nothing but her shorts and a light tunic top.

She wrapped her arms around herself, more to keep herself from unraveling than trying to seek out warmth. There was already too much warmth going around with this weather.

There wasn't a destination, in her small adventure; but she walked down the streets, turning her head from left to right and peering into closed shops and watching everything be so still, awaiting for the morning and for some villager to pick them off their shelves and become of some use. The life of an inanimate object was such a sad one—perhaps it was that reason that they were just that. Inanimate objects, never to have a single feeling as so to be saved from such sadness.

Sakura paused.

She was obviously delirious.

She was delirious and having thoughts about inanimate objects and their loneliness, living on shelves.

She laughed at herself, low and mocking.

At the end of her endless roaming, she found herself sitting on a bench. She leaned forwards, hands gripping the edge of the cool wood, staring down at the way her toes curled and the way dirt and grains of sand coated the soles of her feet. She was at the entrance of a park, she supposed, lifting her head up and squinting into the darkness.

No… It wasn't a park… It was more like a training grounds—acres and acres of land split and set up for training. She stood up from the bench, walking into the grounds and curling her toes against the dry grass beneath her, her eyes looking down at the shrubs and trees. It wasn't surrounded by greenery, and what little was around was dried to the point where Sakura figured that was their natural state because they were dry yet looked so alive. It was nothing like Konoha's training grounds; land consumed by green… But Sakura felt shivers of excitement run up and down her spine.

She had never been around this side of Suna; this fact as well as the thought of how far she'd walked through the village was lost as thoughts about training and being _active_ consumed her.

Sakura grinned, standing at the entrance of one and staring at the dummies and the massive amount of empty land waiting to be turned over by sheer force and speed. She looked up at the sky, eyes narrowed in reaction to the stinging sensation of lack of sleep. The sky was clearing up, dark indigo lightening up to sherbet colors announcing the sun was awake and making its way to the sky.

She should head back home.

At least she knew what she could do when sleep abandoned her, from now on.

.

.

.

The door closed behind her with a click. The sun was rising when she finally arrived home, a fourth of the way out and looking like a slice of peeled orange; she grinned at herself, at the thought. Deliriousness seemed to be her new style, apparently. She sobered up, turning to look at Sasuke as he lay on the couch.

He was facing upwards, now, one arm thrown over his eyes and the other over his stomach. One of his knees was bent, swaying from side to side—he was awake. Of course he was, it was close to six in the morning, if not already. Sasuke was an early riser on his good days and with a roof under their heads and Gaara's protection, every day was a good day until proven otherwise.

She slowly peeled herself away from the door and began to take quiet steps towards the bedroom. She left the door opened, throwing herself onto the bed and allowing her system to go into a light snooze, her brain still functioning and giving her an image of breaking the dummies from the training grounds in half.

.

.

.

Sasuke sat at the edge of the couch, shirtless and black nin-pants riding low on his hips. His hair was a mess, shorter strands matted with sweat against his forehead or the back of his neck. On the small table in front of him laid the chokutō Elder Cat handed to him.

He stared at it, chin resting on his two thumbs, steeped hands covering the bottom half of his face.

He had already sharpened all of his kunai and his shuriken as well as Sakura's. There was nothing else _to do_ around the damn place—going outside was out of the question. Outside, meant more heat than he could bear and wandering eyes filled with curiosity, hostility and whatever else. Sasuke didn't want to deal with something like that—not while all this was happening.

Whatever this was.

All he could do was pace and move around the apartment, sharpening weapons and simply breathing. He would be lying if he said he wasn't getting a bit antsy.

His dark eyes traced the blade of his sword, eyeing it and calculating how sharp it was and how much sharpening it needed. He leaned a bit more closer towards it, practically crouching in front of the little table and off the couch, fingers feathering the hilt and the tip of the blade and turning from one side to the other, inspecting it.

He leaned away, satisfied with what he calculated and running his hand through his hair. The heat was merciless that day, apparently; he was practically drenched in sweat and he wasn't even doing anything productive yet. Sasuke sighed, looking around the apartment and staring at how bright the kitchen looked from the intense illumination the sunrays were giving as they assaulted from the window.

Sighing, Sasuke sat on the couch, again, grabbing his tools and grabbing his chokutō and beginning his process.

.

.

.

Sakura walked into the living room about an hour later, frame rigid and movements sluggish.

Sasuke looked up at her, a dribble of sweat running down his temple and to his cheek until it dropped from his jaw to his pants. She looked awful; blue circled her eyes, making her skin look clammy, and cheekbones more pronounced — thin. She was thinner than any version of Sakura he remembered; thinner than when they met, thinner than in their genin days, thinner than when they met for the first time after years... She was thin.

"Haven't you slept?" He asked, looking back down at his blade.

She sat down next to him, a good amount of space between them. "I… have tried."

Sasuke ran his forefinger against the blade, pulling it back at the stinging sensation—it cut him upon contact. Inwardly, he grinned; sharp enough to cut just about anything in half. He turned back towards Sakura, sucking at the blood leaking from the shallow wound. "You left. It was about three."

"Two," she corrected, taking his wrist and letting chakra coat her thumb as she swiped it against his finger. "I can't… Seem to sleep. Insomnia, I think… Is that stupid?"

Sasuke scoffed, taking his wrist back and inspecting his now healed finger. He nodded, both in satisfaction and gratitude. "Yes. Understandable, but stupid."

She hummed, knowing what he meant but not wanting to ask what kept _him_ up. Surely it wasn't the adrenaline that refused to quiet down, or the height his guard had reached to the point where sleeping and being vulnerable was obsolete. Sasuke had been through these kinds of things more than once; he was more than used to it. No, what kept him up must have been something entirely different.

"I found a training ground."

Sasuke paused from sheathing his chokutō, turning to look at her with a gleam in his eyes.

"I want to go."

"It's morning," he said, his eyes turning towards the illuminated kitchen, again.

Sakura threw herself on the couch, inhaling and depicting his scent of sandalwood and ashes. She closed her eyes, the stinginess unbearable. "Yeah… But in the night. I want to go in the night."

Sasuke grunted, moving to lean his blade against the wall.

"Would you go with me?"

He paused, again, turning to look at her. He didn't say anything, turning away and finding something else to do. She had dozed off, anyway.

.

.

.

Sometime after that, he opened the door at the third knock against it.

Temari stood on the other side, a bag in one of her hands. She stared at him, blankly, giving a curt nod in greeting and Sasuke allowing himself to give her one back.

He stepped aside and granted her entrance, closing the door as soon as she was inside. He turned and watched her place the bag over the bar table, taking out some white boxes and carefully setting them out. Sasuke didn't know much about Sabaku's sister, but he remembered how she looked when she first appeared in Konoha—impish and as blood thirsty as her brothers, if not a bit more collected and able to hide it.

Now, though, she looked calm, tired and accepting. Like a thousand years of patience washed over her, softening her up.

Sasuke didn't think he had ever seen such a change in person, before.

"I brought you guys something to eat," she said, turning around and crumpling the empty bag in her grip. "I… bet it's getting really annoying—staying in here, I mean."

Sasuke nodded, leaning against the back of the couch where Sakura was still half-asleep, if asleep at all.

"Gaara is working on getting the fad about Konoha's new nukenin to die down. At some point we'll be able to get you guys to stop hiding like rats and go outside." She tucked overgrown dirty-blond bangs behind her ear. Her eyes looked over his shoulder, for a second. "She's asleep?"

"Barely," he said, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "Insomnia."

"I see," Temari said, nodding understandingly. She looked around the apartment, for a second, as if trying to look at something to grab her attention or something for a subject to talk about. But there wasn't much, and the ridiculous tension curling around them won as she moved away from the table. She took a couple of steps, pausing and saying, "I'm leaving now."

Sasuke nodded, understanding what she didn't say. He watched her step out of the apartment and running a hand over his face and taking a deep sigh.

.

.

.

"I feel better," Sakura said, sitting on one of the two stools and staring down at her bento. "I didn't sleep—at least I don't think it was sleep… I felt my brain still functioning but… I wasn't _here_. Does that make sense?"

Sasuke handed her a pair of chopsticks, "Yes."

She nodded her head, pulling the chopsticks away from each other and smiling, crookedly. "Thank you for waiting for me."

He swallowed, and said nothing.

.

.

.

They welcomed midnight with opened arms.

Sakura tightened wraps around her hands, starting halfway down her forearm and down just passed her knuckles. With the amount left of the little ball of binding, she was able to wrap her chest tight enough for swifter movements. Sighing after finishing tightening her upper body, she slid her shorts on and tied her hair up in a very messy ponytail.

She sniffed, walking out of the room and walking in on Sasuke, in the living room, fixing wraps around the seal tattoos on his wrists without much effort. It was like something that was engraved in his mind; something he didn't even have to think about to do. Sitting down next to him, she grabbed the ball of wraps and wrapping it around her right thigh. She grinned up at him, handing him the ball of white bindings and saying, "It feels like we're going out to battle—so exciting."

Sasuke paused and stared at her, an eyebrow raised.

Sakura didn't notice as she stood from her seat, pumping a fist in the air and feeling genuinely excited for the first time in a very long time.

"So let's go!"

He eyed her, "You're not wearing a shirt."

Pausing, she sobered up and looked down at herself; with how tight she banded her chest… "Well, it's hot out there and I'm small enough to pass it off."

Sasuke shook his head, leading them both out of the apartment after sliding their boots on.

.

.

.

The air was dry, outside. It wasn't as scorching hot as it had been the night before, but Suna's notorious heat was living up to its reputation, even in the dead of the night. They arrived to the training ground not long after leaving the apartment; they stood at the center, looking around in almost disbelief.

They'd only been cooped up in the apartment for four or five days, yet it had driven them almost crazy.

Sakura took a deep breath, closing her eyes and concentrating on the flow of pent up rage that danced up and down her system just as her chakra did. It felt so familiar, now, her anger—it was like a part of her, now. She'd always have a short temper, she'd always snap—especially at Naruto—when something was said or done wrong or when something unnecessary was said. But that all left after a good smack in the head to the idiot.

But this anger.

Sakura didn't think this anger wanted to part ways, with her. It felt like it wanted to encourage her, manipulate her into becoming the monster she had tried to exorcize from someone else. She opened her eyes, turning to stare as Sasuke quietly attempted to familiarize himself with the place.

She dropped down to the ground to begin some quick stretches; reaching for her toes, turning her torso to the left, then the right, standing up and throwing punches to the air, and then kicks. Sasuke followed her lead, not too long after, taking his shirt off and throwing it aside.

By the time they felt they were warmed up, they were dripping sweat by the bucket load.

She grinned at him, sharply, placing her hands on her hips and tilting her chin up in the air. "Let's do this the old fashioned way."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her, hands stuffed in the pockets of his nin-pants.

"Hand to hand—no weapons and no jutsus. Just full out punches and kicks and body slams."

He scoffed at her, looking away, to the side and towards the trees. "Fine, whatever."

"Cool," she said, taking a battle stance. "First one to be unable to fight loses."

A second later Sasuke disappeared out of sight. Sakura stood straight, hands still curled into fists, up and ready. Her green eyes scanned the grounds, slowly doing a three-sixty as her means to watch her own back. He reappeared in a blink of an eye, an arm pulled back and a fist aimed at her jaw.

Sakura rolled out of the way, grappling the ground in her attempts to stand back up in time to aim a punch. Naturally she missed, and while she gritted her teeth in annoyance, she reminded herself that it was alright. She was familiarizing herself with his speed and his abilities—not counting when she attacked up in the outskirts of Ame, or when they had fought at the bridge where Danzou had captured him, this was their first fight without the intentions to actually hurt—without the label 'enemy' floating above their heads.

Sasuke landed the first contact. He punched her jaw, grabbed her by the arms and swung her away but Sakura was quick to recover, in midair, spitting out blood and dropping herself onto a safe crouch not too far from where she had stood before. Sasuke stared at her, calculating, before they both sprinted towards each other, punches at the ready.

They both met their mark.

Sakura lands a solid punch to his nose and he to her mouth. They both groan, taking couples of steps back and away from each other to grab their bearings. Their eyes locked, brows furrowed and frowns on their split lips before they dove at each other, punch flying after punch flying after kick flying after punch.

Their groans were like music, the sound of the crickets and katydids was the beat, and the smack after wet smack after smack of their blows hitting each other's body was the tempo.

After an intense lock of never-ending blows, Sakura jumped away from him, breathing hard and skin slowly bruising as well as blood trickling down her nose. Sasuke wasn't all too well, himself, a nasty cut on the left side of his lower lip and his right cheekbone was rapidly bruising already.

She never _dreamed_ of doing this—fighting Sasuke and managing to land blows on him.

He was in a completely different league than her!

"Are you going easy on me?" she asked, gulping for air and trying to get rid of the excess blood stuck in her nose.

Sasuke looked up at her, eyes narrowed and hair a complete mess. "Don't be stupid."

She gritted her teeth, pride wounded, and dashed towards him, growling as she aimed a punch. Naturally, Sasuke met her head on and another bout began; Sasuke punched her in the stomach, Sakura doubled-over, gasping for air but still managing to swipe her leg and kick him off balance.

He twisted in midair, planting his palms onto the ground and flipping himself upright; he grunted, leaning back and avoiding her punch. He returned to his normal height, grabbing Sakura's wrist and throwing her away from his person. He was after her a second later, giving her no time to recollect herself.

But Sakura wasn't one to fall back so easily. She blocked the blows she could, endured the ones she missed and threw her own blind punches and landing a blow or five.

This went on for hours, the sky slowly but surely began to lighten up, watching them from above as they moved all over the training ground, punching and kicking and jumping and rolling. By the time the cerulean sky lightened up with tones of orange, pink and violet, they were drenched in mud and dirt and blood and sweat.

They stood on opposite ends of the ground, breathing raggedly through their mouths, fists lazily curled at their sides and inspecting the other.

Sakura dropped to her knees just as Sasuke leaned against a tree and slowly dropped himself down. Their eyes locked, admitting they both quit, and tried to regain their breath.

She grinned; feeling terribly exhausted and as if this would be the remedy that would perhaps send her to a black abyss, sealed by sleep. She looked up at the sky and watched the sun rise.

* * *

Thank you to Emily for reassuring me this was good and to Paige who kept cheerleading me into not giving up.

Sorry for the loooooong wait, pretty senoritas, I was literally blocked with this baby. So, for whomever only follows this fic and not my account, happy new year and hi! Oh, also, shout out to Joy-girl for politely pointing a fault out, in the last chapter, and making me realize that it was THAT that was bugging me with the chapter in general; I'll go back, at some point, and make the scenes longer (:

Anyway, please review! Tell me what your favorite scene was, your favorite line and how you think Sasuke and Sakura's friendship will mend? (:


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